Text: STORYTELLER/MH & Ellie Henman (The Sun) - Photos: Ellie Henman / Dolce & Gabbana Old Bond Street
The year 2026 is slowly but surely drawing to a close, the days are getting shorter, and the weather is turning dreary. Many of us are already thinking about the upcoming Christmas holidays and buying the first gifts for our loved ones. Whether Sir Rod Stewart was also on the hunt for presents for the festive season when he entered the Dolce & Gabbana store on London's Old Bond Street at midday on Monday is unknown.
Ellie Henman, a reporter for the daily newspaper "The Sun," who has been responsible for celebrity gossip since 2023, was also on Old Bond Street that Monday. Her destination was also the Dolce & Gabbana store, but not necessarily to blow her hard-earned reporter's salary. Henman, now 37, had an interview appointment with music legend Sir Rod Stewart.
"I look like a disheveled Julia Roberts in Pretty Woman," she wrote. Rod comes in with two pairs of trousers under his arm for alterations and says in his typical Cockney accent, "The legs are too long," before adding, "And a bottle of perfume for the lady, please."
After she is presented with a beautifully wrapped bottle of perfume, the two sit down on a sofa to discuss Stewart's upcoming final year of touring.
PHENOMENAL DEMAND
Not without pride, the singer announces that due to phenomenal demand, two additional dates have recently been added to the almost sold-out UK tour (London & Glasgow, editor's note).
"At 81, that's quite remarkable," Rod says of ticket sales. Almost all the concerts in the United Kingdom are sold out, and tickets for the other European shows, including those in Germany, are also selling like hotcakes. “I can’t jump around like I did when I was 32. But I think the audience knows that my voice is better than ever,” Stewart dictates to his interviewer. “Some of the great voices have fallen silent. Paul McCartney’s voice has diminished somewhat. I treat my voice like a treasure. Pavarotti said, ‘I’m a prisoner of my voice,’ and it’s true—you wake up and think, ‘Oh, I have an itch. Damn! I have to cancel.’ I’m totally paranoid about runny noses now. If I go out these days, I wear white gloves like Michael Jackson. He did that to protect himself from colds and the flu,” Sir Rod explains.
REMARKABLY GOOD HEALTH
Even though the 81-year-old had to undergo minor heart surgery in August and subsequently cancel all his remaining performances planned for this year, the singer enjoys remarkably good health at his advanced age and after more than six decades on stage.
"It's my rigorous training program. I train like an athlete and sleep a lot," says Rod, who also explains that he prepares specifically for each and every show. "When you're in your twenties or thirties, you don't even warm up," he laughs. "You drink whatever you want, take drugs, and go on stage. Back then, we Faces and I would always get completely wasted. Now I'm totally sober when I go on stage, and then I might have a rum and Coke after the third song or so."
But keeping his hands off alcohol isn't the only reason for Rod's exceptional fitness. “I also train for an hour before I perform—stretching, cycling, exercise bike, massage, vocal warm-ups, just to get myself in the right frame of mind. It’s like competitive sports.”
Regarding his home workouts, Rod adds: “Three times a week I cycle a mile, lots of hills, and I swim a lot. Frank Sinatra told me about it. He said, ‘If you dive as much as you can and hold your breath until you feel like you’re going to burst, your lungs will get bigger. And they’ll get used to you holding your breath and singing.’”
Rod and Ellie Henman last Monday in London
FIT AS A FIRST
The man is as fit as a fiddle, and his voice is back in top form. The moment he needed supplemental oxygen at a concert last summer at an altitude of 1,300 meters is long forgotten. "I was sick, which was really bad luck. I had bronchitis, even though I was playing at high altitude. I felt really awful. I ran out and played three fast songs. Suddenly, I felt like I couldn't breathe. I managed to finish the show, but it was really painful," Stewart recalls, grinning from ear to ear.
This isn't the only time that day Ellie Henman wonders if the man sitting across from her is really over 80. "He could easily pass for 20 years younger," she writes, and she's sure to find a lot of agreement among her readers.
But Rod isn't entirely without his little flaws, at least according to his wife, Penny Lancaster. The Maggie May singer can't resist a good glass of wine, just like many musicians.
"Not that I drink a lot, but I love wine with dinner," he explains. "I have a great cook, and I just can't drink water with a good meal. Penny's always saying, 'You need to cut down, darling.' I only have a few glasses. But sometimes I treat myself to an Apple Martini, and I'll definitely down that."
SPECTACULAR JOURNEY & SECRET DOCUMENTARY
Rod is already as excited as a little kid about his upcoming tour, "The Final Encore." "It's going to be phenomenal. The setlists are still being finalized, but my fans can look forward to a spectacular journey down memory lane, featuring numerous Top Ten hits."
It all kicks off on April 29th in Glasgow. Next late summer, he plans to finally call it quits on his big concert tours. And what comes next?
Rod has repeatedly emphasized that the end of his tours by no means signifies his retirement. His wife Penny once said, "Rod will never truly stop."
And accordingly, the living legend already has several plans for the future. First and foremost, there's the new album (A Little Of What You Fancy Does You Good), which is scheduled for release in March.
"I have the idea of playing smaller concerts, in the style of a residency. I've also spoken with Jools Holland, with whom I recorded the album 'Swing Fever.' I don't know if he wants to do that with me, because I think he's afraid of losing his identity. If not, I'll start my own big band. I'd like to play a few nights at the London Palladium, and then perhaps at the Royal Albert Hall," Stewart reports.
Furthermore, a top-secret documentary is in the pipeline. Rod revealed that he has just given an interview with his old friend and rival, Sir Elton John. “The documentary we filmed is scheduled for release at the beginning of the year. At the end… he kissed me on the mouth. And we filmed it.”
FUTURE PLANS
In a lighthearted conversation with Ellie Henman, there was also time to look back on more than six decades of an extraordinary career. “I want to thank my fans for that. They have made an incredibly luxurious lifestyle possible for me. When I was in school, I never would have dreamed that after my attempts at singing, it would end like this—me, on stage at 81. It has been a wonderful life, and I am eternally grateful.”
The end of the tour should also allow Rod to spend more time with his family in the future and dedicate himself to his great hobby, model railroading. The layout covers 156 square meters and includes a 275-meter-long track that runs through a model city. It has occupied Rod for decades.
“I would like to make it accessible to the public and donate the proceeds,” he explains. “I think I’ll get the permit. I want to share it with the world.”
PUTIN IS A BASTARD – TRUMP IS A PIG
Politics is another of Rod’s great passions, although he admits he tends to keep his views to himself these days for fear of being misunderstood.
One topic we passionately discuss, however, is the plight of the people in Ukraine—which Rod has publicly supported since Russia’s invasion in 2022.
“I just hope it’s not too late for Ukraine,” he says. “They’re going into winter now, and this could be the turning point. It’s frightening. They’re bombing the fuel and water supplies. Putin is a bastard.”
Another point of contention is US President Donald Trump, for whom Rod has no sympathy.
“I stand by what I said to King Charles,” he says. “I said, ‘Trump is a pig.’ I could see the king was about to laugh.”
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