Elton John has hit out at tabloid stories saying he was 'looking frail' at a German airport during his Farwell Yellow Brick Tour of the world, which is due in Swansea later this month. The I'm Still Standing singer posted to his Instagram after being spotted in the chair, explaining that he was resting his hip on the long walk to his flight following one of his two-and-a-half hour gigs.
John, who turned 75 in March added that he was in 'top health' and gives 100% at each of his shows. Those shows run until July 2023, so we don't blame Elton for having a sit-down when he can. The tour actually started way back in September 2018 and called in Cardiff in the summer of 2019, but then was paused due to the pandemic and the singer sustained a hip injury last year.
In his post, Elton John thanked all his fans and wrote: "The true story is that I’m in top health, loving my shows and playing and singing at my very best. I give 100% every night and never want to disappoint, especially after everyone has waited so long to get back to seeing shows. Your response to every show has been phenomenal and I’m loving every minute of it.
"After another rousing 2.5 hour show, we arrived at Leipzig airport just before curfew, to find part of the airport had closed. It was an extremely long walk to get to the plane, so my team kindly laid on a wheelchair so I could rest my hip after doing the show. That’s all folks."
Elton is calling in Italy, Denmark and France this month, before coming back to the UK where he'll headline Hyde Park and stop at the Swansea.com Stadium. He last played Swansea in 2008 and you can read our review of how that concert went by clicking here. The Rocketman singer is pals with Welsh actor Taron Egerton thanks to the latter portraying him in the big screen biopic of his early life, and he gave the Welshman his own honorific drag name, Blodwyn Campervan, something Elton has done for Freddie Mercury, Rod Stewart.
