Sir Tom Jones and fellow judge Olly Murs shared an awkward exchange as the talent show got off to a competitive start on Saturday night.
The Voice UK returned to screens with a new series, but it wasn’t long before popstar Olly Murs managed to rub veteran coach Tom up the wrong way.
Following a stand-out performance of JP Cooper hit In The Silence from contestant David on the ITV singing competition, both coaches swivelled their chairs in the hopes of securing the 20-year-old for their own teams.
However Olly made sure to put a stop to it by using his Block button, preventing Tom and fellow coaches Anne-Marie and will.i.am from getting the contestant
Tom said at the end of the performance: “That's what I was looking for and I thought I had him in the palm of my hand then this gentleman from Essex came along…”
To which Heart Skips a Beat hitmaker Olly fired back: “It was never my intention to block you Tom but I knew that type of singer was someone I wanted. You've still got a block left, I have no blocks left.”
Tom quickly swiped back at his fellow coach exclaiming: “Well thank god for that.”
Elsewhere in the first episode of the series, The Voice fans were left emotional as the series returned, after Sir Tom Jones gave an emotional performance to the studio audience and reduced his fellow judges to tears.
After chants from fans, the 82-year-old was handed a microphone and performed I Won't Crumble With You If You Fall to the live audience.
The studio fell silent during the soulful rendition and fellow judges Anne-Marie and Olly were seen tearing up at the track from his Surrounded By Time album.
After he had finished, Tom took a moment to explain the meaning of the emotional ballad, which he said he had written in memory of his wife Melinda, who died in 2016 aged 75.
He told the audience: “My wife, you know, she was dying of lung cancer, so I said, you know, I was always able to fix stuff, to do things if she needed me I was always there.
“She said, 'Don't crumble with me, don't fall now, you've done everything you can, you must carry on and do what you do.
“So I put the song, when I heard it, it was like it was written for this situation. It's a lovely song.”
