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Elton John ‘jubilant’ to finish farewell tour and ‘be a family’, says husband David Furnish

John’s Farewell Yellow Brick Road tour concludes in Sweden on Saturday

Isobel Lewis
Tuesday 04 July 2023 13:53 BST
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Elton John steps out onto Pyramid stage at Glastonbury 2023

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Elton John is “jubilant” that his touring career is coming to an end, as the singer has “had enough of missing his sons”.

The “Crocodile Rock” musician is currently performing on the concluding leg of his long-delayed Farewell Yellow Brick Road tour, following a historic final performance at Glastonbury Festival.

Ahead of his last shows in Copenhagen and Stockholm this week, John’s husband, filmmaker David Furnish, said that the singer is looking forward to focusing on family.

The couple have two sons, Zachary, 12, and Elijah, 10, who have travelled with their dads on tour throughout their lives.

“It’s always hard saying goodbye,” Furnish told Metro. “[But] It’s hard. I really miss him. The boys really miss him. He really misses us. He’s had enough of that. We’ve had enough of that. Now it’s time to spend more time together as a family.

“We could not be happier and more excited about it, and a lot of people would say, ‘Oh, you must be really emotional,’ but at the end of the tour, he and I both sit at the table and go, ‘We can’t wait to be a family.’”

Furnish with his and Elton’s sons Elijah (left) and Zachary in 2022
Furnish with his and Elton’s sons Elijah (left) and Zachary in 2022 (AFP via Getty Images)

Furnish continued: “Elton says, ‘I’ve done this my whole life. I have loved every minute of it.’ He loves his time on stage. He’s super grateful but he doesn’t need any more. Our boys are 10 and 12, they really need us more and more.

“To be able to do that is more satisfying, more joyful, more fulfilling and having that opportunity to co-parent those children brings us endless happiness, joy and satisfaction.”

John closed out Glastonbury on Sunday (25 June) night, as he headlined the Pyramid Stage with a set packed with hits and special guest appearances.

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In her five-star review for The Independent, Kate Hutchinson called the 76-year-old’s set “surely the glitziest and most high-energy retirement party the world has ever seen”.

John closed out the UK leg of his tour at Glastonbury in June
John closed out the UK leg of his tour at Glastonbury in June (Leon Neal/Getty Images)

It is estimated that more than 120,000 people watched John’s performance at Worthy Farm, with viewers at home amazed by the sheer magnitude of the crowd.

“That Pyramid Stage crowd is the largest I’ve ever seen,” one fan twitter, while another wrote: “I’ve watched this for years and NEVER seen as big a crowd as Elton John has. Wow!”

“Absolutely amazing the size of crowd at Glastonbury for the legend that is Elton John,” one viewer wrote.

At home, 7.6 million people tuned into the live broadcast of the set.

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