"If you was married to somebody for 50 years, you can have your little spats here and there, and we don't mind having them in public occasionally," the guitarist told Rolling Stone magazine. "We can't get divorced - we're doing it for the kids!"

The Stones will play two gigs at the O2 Arena, where tickets cost 95 to 950 pounds ($1,500) for a VIP seat, before crossing the Atlantic for a show at Barclay Center, Brooklyn on December 8 and two at the Prudential Center, Newark on December 13 and 15.

Jagger has been quick to defend the pricing, saying that the shows were expensive to stage and tickets being traded on secondary sites for greater than their face value did not mean more money for the band.

As to what the five concerts could lead to, Richards said in a recent interview: "My experience with the Rolling Stones is that once the juggernaut starts rolling, it ain't gonna stop."

Jagger and Richards are the only two members of the Stones who were there at its inception in 1962. Watts joined in early 1963 and Wood was recruited in the mid-1970s to replace Mick Taylor when he left.

They are widely acknowledged as the greatest rock and roll band in history, producing more than 20 studio albums, selling an estimated 200 million copies, conquering the United States and charting the social and sexual mores of their time.

Their longevity is all the more surprising given their reputation for living in the fast lane. Wood is in his third year of sobriety after struggling with alcohol addiction and Richards said he is drinking less and "gave up smack" (heroin).