Rod Stewart's record breaking hope after health issues force him to cancel gigs

Sir Rod Stewart is set to take to the Legend stage at Glastonbury next weekend despite a run of recent health setbacks. The Maggie May icon, 80, caused concern amongst his fans last week when he was forced to cancel a run of gigs due to illness, throwing his much-anticipated set at the iconic UK festival into doubt.
Rod axed six shows, four of which were in Nevada including two at Caesars Palace, as well as two in California. Sir Rod took to Instagram to say he was under 'strict doctor's orders' to rest his voice as he apologised for having to reschedule. He added: "I have to cancel and reschedule my next six concerts in June as I continue to recover from the flu.
"So sorry my friends. I'm devastated and sincerely apologise for any inconvenience to my fans. I'll be back on stage and will see you soon."
But anyone who has tickets for Glastonbury and is worried they might not see the legend in action in his Sunday, June 29 slot should be rest assured the megastar is at the top of his game when it comes to health and fitness, despite his recent issues with the flu, and he's even hoping to break a world-record for sprinting soon.
The Celtic-daft star has got a race track in the garden of his Essex home and has been practicing furiously. He told AARP magazine: "I got it [his 100m time] down to 19 seconds by learning how to push off. I'm going to try and do 17 seconds, which I think is a world record for an 80 year old."
Rod says he likes to keep himself in shape, and revealed he's worked with the same personal trainer for the past 38 years. He added: "I keep myself very fit, I played soccer all my life – don't so much anymore, because I had a knee replacement. And I've always had a trainer – same guy for 38 years. I have an indoor pool, massive gym, golf course, everything."
Rod also revealed that he is inspired by another legendary crooner when it comes to his strict fitness regime - the late Frank Sinatra.
He said: "We do a lot of underwater training, where the trainer throws a brick into the pool and I have to dive in, push the brick to the end of the pool, and come up. Frank Sinatra once said to me 'Rod, the secret to being a great singer is having powerful lungs. Do lots of underwater swimming, where you hold your breath'."
The dad of eight recently announced that he will reunite with his former Faces bandmate Ronnie Wood for his Glastonbury gig, and he expressed some dissatisfaction at the allocated length of his set - showing he's more than ready to put on a great show for the crowds.
Speaking on the That Peter Crouch Podcast, he told the former footballer he was only due to play for an hour and a quarter on the Pyramid Stage.
"I've asked them 'Please, another 15 minutes' because I play for over two hours every night and it's nothing," he said.

Try Our AI Features

Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:

Learn with AIFact CheckingText to SpeechAI Summary

Related Articles

Daily Mail​

an hour ago

• Daily Mail​

LIZ JONES: With this As Ever launch, Meghan's finally found a money-spinner that will work... because she's realised one key thing

'No more sleeps!' That was the over-excited, slightly infantile proclamation on the Duchess of Sussex 's Instagram account this morning. There was even a ticking clock counting down the seconds before the summer drop of new products landed on her As Ever website. 'Here we go!' shouted the next post, along with a photo of Meghan in a garden swing, hair flowing, sleeves puffy. My excitement could barely be contained. I was on tenterhooks!

Scottish Sun

an hour ago

• Scottish Sun

Inside Aaron Taylor-Johnson's controversial marriage… and how it survived ‘grooming claims' and vile stepdaughter slurs

SHE'S been labelled a 'cradle-snatcher', 'sexual deviant' and even a 'groomer' - while he has been accused of having 'complex mother issues'. Yet stepping out on the red carpet in London earlier this week for the world premiere of his new film 28 Years Later, Sam and Aaron Taylor-Johnson looked unfazed by the furore that's forever stalked their relationship. Advertisement 16 Posing together this week at the 28 Years Later premiere in London, Aaron and Sam Taylor-Johnson looked loved up ahead of celebrating their 13th anniversary on Saturday Credit: Getty 16 The couple started dating in 2009, when Aaron was still a teenager Credit: Getty 16 The couple have been subjected to vile slurs and 'grooming' accusations Credit: Instagram/@aarontaylorjohnson From where they're standing, they've proved the critics wrong. Tomorrow marks their 13th wedding anniversary, after all - an impressive feat by Hollywood standards. Advertisement But it's even more startling considering the never-ending noise surrounding their age-gap romance, and its very unconventional beginning. They first met in 2008, when Aaron, then just 18, was cast in the role of a teenage John Lennon in Sam's directorial debut Nowhere Boy. Filmmaker and double cancer survivor Sam was 41, more than double his age, and had two daughters with her ex-husband, the art dealer Jay Jopling - to whom she was married for 11 years before they 'amicably' split in 2008. While seemingly worlds apart, the pair connected and reportedly got together upon completing their film. As Sam told Harper's Bazaar in 2019, 'We were very professional through the entire film… But everyone on set knew. Advertisement 'And as soon as we finished, he told me he was going to marry me. We had never been on a date, or even kissed.' She was quick to stress the fact that he pursued her, seemingly trying - and failing - to squash the 'granny groomer' accusations swiftly lobbed in her direction. Filming concluded in March and, by June - when Aaron turned 19 - they were stepping out together on date nights. Neither confirmed a romance, but the PDAs did the talking. By their film's premiere in October 2009 they were officially a couple. Advertisement Walking the red carpet arm-in-arm - Sam in a glitzy gold dress and Aaron in a tux - they started as they meant to go on: loud and unapologetic. Needless to say, the reaction was deafening. Comments from the time included: 'She looks like his mum!' and 'How can she do this to him? He's only a child who barely knows his own mind yet.' Double standards Some were also quick to point out that any positive reactions would have been very different were things the other way around. Sam wasn't just more than two decades older than Aaron. She was also wealthier, more established and - with friends like artist Damien Hirst and Elton John - enviably better connected. Advertisement What's more, as the director of his breakout movie, she was effectively his boss. But despite the cascade of 'casting couch' accusations, the couple remained defiant - and a year after they met, Aaron got down on one knee. Critics loudly declared it wouldn't last, with one commenter suggesting: 'Let's see how long he sticks around if he makes it big.' 16 The couple first met on the set of Nowhere Boy, in which a then 18-year-old Aaron played John Lennon Credit: Alamy 16 The couple went official at the Nowhere Boy premiere in October 2009 Credit: PA:Press Association Advertisement 16 Sam received her OBE in 2011 with Aaron and daughters Angelica and Jessie Phoenix by her side Credit: Getty 16 Sam shares her two elder daughters with ex-husband Jay Jopling Credit: Getty Another scoffed: 'I give it three months.' By 2010 they'd welcomed their first child together - daughter Wylda Rae, now 14 - and second daughter Romy followed in January 2012. They married five months later at Babington House in Somerset - a lavish do attended by Beyonce and Elton John - and combined their surnames. They now live down the road in a £1.85m farmhouse in Bruton. Advertisement Aaron claimed he wasn't nervous about fatherhood as he'd already settled into the role of stepdad to Sam's two daughters - Angelica, now 28, and Jessie Phoenix, now 18 - despite the fact that Angelica was only six years his junior. He's made a point of stating he considers them both his own daughters, affectionately calling Jessie his 'babygirl' in an Instagram caption last year to mark her 18th birthday. Obviously any suggestion he's anything more than a loving stepfather is unfounded - which is why the latest slew of rumours surrounding Aaron and his stepdaughter must have stung. Last December Aaron and Sam were joined by Angelica and Jessie Phoenix on the red carpet for the premiere of his movie Kraven The Hunter. 16 Aaron wished his stepdaughter Jessie Phoenix happy birthday last year Credit: Instagram@/aarontaylorjohnson Advertisement 16 Attending the Kraven The Hunter premiere last December with elder daughters Angelica and Jessie Phoenix - in a photo op that sparked controversy Credit: Getty 16 The couple still collaborate on projects - like their 2019 film A Million Little Pieces Credit: Getty Images - Getty Posing for the cameras, Aaron put his arm around Jessie Phoenix and gave her a reassuring stroke on the back. The candid moment - a fatherly gesture no doubt intended to reassure the camera-shy teenager - was catnip to twisted internet trolls who branded the it 'disgusting', while TikTok lit up with clips of the moment. Wild conspiracy theories of an illicit affair flooded the comments, with one commenter questioning: 'Are they flirting?' and another writing: 'What if being with the grandma is all a show and he's with her daughter?' Advertisement A third added: 'If I didn't know their story, I would think that was his girlfriend.' Unsurprisingly the couple, nor their children, dignified the ludicrous furore with a response. Their reaction was the same when, two years ago, vicious rumours swirled that Aaron had an affair with his much younger Bullet Train co-star Joey King, 25. I much prefer being a parent to working. Doesn't everybody? Aaron Taylor-Johnson In his early 20s, father-of-four Aaron claimed he was just as happy playing a stay-at-home dad as he was leading blockbuster films. His early roles in their relationship included Kick Ass, Savages, Anna Karenina and Godzilla. Advertisement When Sam won the highly-contested directing gig for Fifty Shades of Grey in 2015, he took time off to man the fort at home. As he later told The Post, 'I much prefer being a parent to working. Doesn't everybody? The best time I have is with my kids, experiencing their growth and their life with them. I think it's important to have time to enjoy that.' As for Sam, she paid tribute to him while promoting the film, saying, "Being in an amazing relationship, having come out of a difficult one, it felt so good [that he stayed at home while she worked]. 'And I feel like that stability has enabled me to get on with doing this momentous project." She then returned the favour, enabling him to star in 2016's Nocturnal Animals to rave reviews and a Golden Globe Award. Advertisement Paying tribute to his beloved in his speech, he said: "I want to thank my wife for being there with me, supporting me through this. 'Thank you for putting up with me. Jesus, that was not very pleasant in this role, so you're my soulmate and I love you very much… I'm blessed. I have four beautiful daughters: Anjelica, Phoenix, Wylda, and Romy, I love you all very much." Sam has described Aaron as an old soul in a younger man's body, and claims their strong union has come from their ability to ignore the uproar. 16 The couple have been inseparable since the day they met Credit: Getty - Contributor 16 They still post loved-up snaps together Credit: Instagram/@aarontaylorjohnson Advertisement 16 Sam's ex Jay Jopling, now 62, had a fling with Lily Allen, now 40, when she was 23 Credit: Big Pictures In 2017, she said: 'If I gave a second thought to other people, I would be the unhappiest person, probably still in a miserable marriage. 'People like to talk about [the age gap]. I'm like, 'Yeah, but it works better than my last marriage'. It's lasted longer than a lot of my friends' marriages.' Ironically, months before she and Aaron went public, her ex Jay Jopling was embroiled in his own age-gap romance when he was pictured kissing a then 23-year-old Lily Allen in the Caribbean. The fling fizzled out quickly, but he was never tarnished with the same 'groomer' label as Sam. Advertisement Power play Speaking in 2023, Amelia Kelley, a trauma-informed therapist, told Business Insider that criticism surrounding the Taylor-Johnsons was blatant misogyny. "When we see an older woman with a younger man, it underscores that the woman isn't as young as we think they should be,' she said. 'That could be uncomfortable for someone to see.' Yet Elizabeth Jeglic, a professor of psychology at John Jay College in New York, argued against the gendered critique, suggesting it was Sam who could have abused her position of power. "The person who is older tends to be a person who has more power or more experience,' she said. Advertisement 'They often will select individuals who are younger and more inexperienced because they're more vulnerable. And that creates an unequal power dynamic." Aaron's still surprised by the furore and frenzy his age-gap romance stirs up. 16 The happy couple renewed their vows in 2022 Credit: Instagram/@aarontaylorjohnson 16 They also have matching tattoos of each other's names Credit: Instagram/@_dr_woo_ Speaking last year to Rolling Stone, he said, 'What you gotta realise is that what most people were doing in their twenties, I was doing when I was 13. Advertisement 'You're doing something too quickly for someone else? I don't understand that. What speed are you supposed to enjoy life at? It's bizarre to me." General consensus is that Aaron wasn't seeking a mummy figure because of any maternal hole in his life. He's in fact remained incredibly close to his own mother, Sarah, who accompanied him to film sets throughout his young career, taught him 'how to be a man' and has played an active role in raising her grandchildren. As for his early dating life there's no sign of any prior 'older woman fetish', with previous flings including actresses Georgia Groome, 33, and Alice Connor, 34. Likewise, it doesn't seem like Sam was simply looking for someone to baby or boss around. Advertisement She may be a bigwig director, but she's just as happy sharing the spotlight with her incredibly successful, increasingly handsome younger husband. Aaron's role in Danny Boyle's latest epic promises to strengthen his position as one of the UK's most successful actors on both sides of the pond - while whispers that he's favourite to play the next James Bond continue. As the couple hit the red carpet this week, now aged 35 and 58 respectively, one cynic wrote, 'son and great-grandma', while another commented, 'She really got her claws in deep, that one.' But refreshingly, many comments now celebrate the pair, with one writing: 'Good on them for proving haters wrong.' Another added: 'Age is just a number when you love each other as this couple obviously do.' Advertisement It's safe to say they'll never stop courting controversy - as every time they step out together, the public are reminded of how it all began. But over a decade later, the Taylor-Johnsons continue to put two fingers up to their doubters.

Glasgow Times

an hour ago

• Glasgow Times

Meghan launches new jams and £20 orange blossom honey in website restock

Meghan had promised some 'delicious surprises' as she teased, earlier this week, that she would be offering some new products on her As Ever site. Also available are an apricot spread in 'keepsake packaging' and a crepe mix, both £10 each, flower sprinkles for £11 and a range of herbal teas at £9 each. In an Instagram post at the same time as the new products went live, the California-based duchess wrote: 'Yummies, and honeys, and fruit spreads, oh my!' Meghan previously said the April launch of her As Ever products, including jam and herbal tea, had been 'absolutely extraordinary'. But she also spoke of her fear that she annoyed customers when the first batch of her jam and herbal teas sold out in less than an hour. She said wanted to wait until it is 'completely stable and we have everything we need'. In the run-up to her re-stock, Meghan shared a photo of jam-making preparations including bowls of strawberries, raspberries and blueberries, and freshly squeezed lemons, on her Instagram stories, writing: ''June gloom?' Not over here! Because this month your favourite products are back.' Her official As Ever account also posted: 'To all who've been wondering and waiting, thank you! 'Your favourites are returning, plus a few NEW things we can't wait to show you. Coming this month … get excited!'