Jay-Z and Kanye Westhave been speaking about why they chose sleepy Somerset to work on new tracks for their joint album Watch The Throne.

The new tracks were recorded at the Real World Studios, owned by Peter Gabriel, and the rappers stayed at Bath’s Royal Crescent Hotel. Jay said the pair made a lot of progress at the sessionand that the album was “pretty close” to being finished.

“We had fireworks coming out. We had a whole fireworks show. It was great,” the Roc Nation boss said. “It’s this big room so everyone can sit in the room and add to the process. You had the producers in the room sitting all lined up. We were recording in the room, not the booth, so everyone got to see us while we were recording vocals and everyone had to be quiet.”

Kanye said he found the West Country setting inspirational. "We were in a motorcade driving to the studio; I'm seeing kids learning how to ride horses out of the window."

Beyoncé tagged along too; she and Jay were spotted dining at a café in Bath and browsing the antique shops. A local chef told The Mirror: "It was surreal. One minute, you're walking down George Street on a grotty weekday morning, the next, Jay-Z and Beyoncé are sipping coffee out of china mugs.

"I clocked them strutting past the Odeon and was hoping Jay-Z would pop in for some pick 'n' mix. Sadly, he didn't."

The power couple also used their time in Blighty to catch up with Lady GaGa, who was in London this week on a break from her Monster Ball tour. The trio met up at the Berkeley Hotel for three hours, finally calling it a night at 2am.