Sir Elton John vowed to never let his children be scared of him after his own childhood filled with "fear".
The 78-year-old singer - who has sons Zachary, 14, and Elijah, 12, with husband David Furnish - vowed when he and his spouse became parents that their kids would have a different upbringing to his, as he was often "walking on egg shells" around his "strict" parents Sheila and Stanley Dwight.
Speaking to new dads Mark Wright and Ollie Murs on Heart FM, he said: "I was brought up in a very strict household in the ‘50s. I grew up in fear of my mum and my dad and I said to David when we were having Zachary, I said, 'I never want my kids to grow up in fear. I never want them to be afraid of us.'
"I was walking on egg shells the whole time in my childhood. And it wasn’t a bad childhood but the fear of doing something wrong and I said to David, 'That’s it, they mustn’t be filled with fear.' "
And Elton believes his and David's subsequent approach to parenting has proved successful.
He added: "Have discipline, of course, but no fear, no smacking, nothing. And it has worked beautifully, they have been fantastic."
Elton recently admitted he wants to be remembered as a "great dad" first and foremost, ahead of his musical accomplishments, after his death.
Speaking at a special Q+A event at the London Palladium last week, he said: “On my tombstone, I want nothing to do with Crocodile f****** Rock. I just want it to say: ‘He was a great dad’.”
Elton is known for his trademark glasses and he revealed he owns at least 10,000 pairs.
Asked about the size of his eyewear collection by the night's host, Dan Levy, he said: “I don’t really know. We keep them in storage as I don’t have that big a house but I would say, I guess at least between ten and 15 thousand.”
His collaborator Brandi Carlile laughed: “Now I don’t feel bad about my shoes.”
The 'Tiny Dancer' hitmaker noted there has been a recent pushback against LGBTQ+ rights.
He added: “It’s tough out there, but these things will pass.”
