Introduction:
After losing his wife in 2021, legendary British singer Engelbert Humperdinck found solace on stage. Performing, he says, helped him navigate the pain.
“I lost my darling,” the 89-year-old pop icon, known for 1960s classics like Release Me and The Last Waltz, shared in a Zoom interview with The Straits Times from his Bel Air home in Los Angeles.
“Singing and playing for audiences all over the world just takes something out of me. It quiets my thoughts and helps me cope.”
His beloved wife, British actress Patricia Healey, passed away at 85 from heart failure after battling Alzheimer’s and Covid-19. The couple, married for 57 years, had four grown children.
“Since she’s gone, I feel songs differently,” Humperdinck said. “There’s more heart, more soul in the way I sing. I think I’m performing even better now because I feel like she’s watching over me.”
Humperdinck’s 2025 world tour will take him across Europe, the U.S., and Asia, including a stop in Singapore at The Star Theatre on November 3. He last performed there in 2019. Fans can expect his biggest hits, songs that have been “tried and tested around the world.”
“I’m really looking forward to returning to Singapore. It’s been a few years, and it’s such a wonderful place. I love how clean it is—and, of course, the shopping!”
Despite the tour’s title, Engelbert Humperdinck’s Last Waltz Farewell Tour, he insists retirement isn’t on the horizon. “I don’t know when I’ll hang up my hat. Right now, my voice is strong, and I’m not ready to sit at home doing nothing.”
Since starting his career in the mid-1950s, Humperdinck has released 42 albums and sold over 140 million records worldwide. His latest album, All About Love (2023), features his take on classic love songs, including When Will I See You Again and If You Don’t Know Me By Now.
His music has found a new audience thanks to streaming shows. A Man Without Love (1968) appeared in Marvel’s Moon Knight (2022), and Quando Quando Quando (1968) was featured in Netflix’s The Umbrella Academy (2019–2024).
“After Moon Knight, I noticed a lot of young faces in the audience. They were curious about an Engelbert Humperdinck show—and they loved it! They were right there, shaking my hand. It was exciting.”
Humperdinck also keeps in touch with fans through social media, including his weekly Instagram and Facebook series Tuesday Museday, where he shares updates on his life and work.
He stays connected to modern music too, watching shows like The Voice and sometimes bringing songs he enjoys to his recording manager. “If I like something, I’ll say, ‘Why don’t we give this a try?’”