Sir Tom Jones is undeniably a Welsh icon whose legendary voice continues to captivate audiences. Yet, it's his remarkable showbiz anecdotes that have become nearly as celebrated as his musical career, thanks to the extraordinary encounters he's had on his journey to fame.
The Pontypridd-born star, now 85, has an abundance of tales about his famous friends, with one particular story consistently reducing audiences to hysterics. The anecdote recently gained fresh attention after footage from The Graham Norton Show resurfaced on TikTok, featuring none other than Elvis Presley.
The two icons shared numerous memorable moments throughout their friendship. Remarkably, the singers once found themselves completely unclothed together in the most peculiar of circumstances.
With Elvis Presley's birthday falling today (January 8), it's the ideal moment to revisit this extraordinary story, which is guaranteed to have you chuckling.
Sir Tom recalled their first meeting back in 1965 whilst he was in Hawaii, where they struck up a strong friendship. He described the encounter as "wonderful", reports Wales Online.
He recalled: "And Gene Autry was there and I thought, God, this is unbelievable. My first year in show business, and then I had to go to Paramount Studios for a song for something, and they said 'Elvis Presley is going to be there tomorrow, and he would like to meet you'.
"I thought, Elvis Presley wants to meet me? It was unbelievable, and I went there to go and see about this song, and they said 'Elvis is filming, and once they've stopped the filming, you go in'.
"So, I did, and they closed the doors again and I'm standing in the back there with the Memphis Mafia, these guys that work for him, and he's in this mock helicopter with this girl.
"They did the scene, and I'm looking like, my God, it's Elvis Presley, and then they said 'cut' and he looked across and went (waved). I was looking at these fellas who were with me, [and they said] 'Elvis is waving at you, wave back'."
He continued: "[And I thought] me? So anyways, he gets out of this helicopter and he starts walking towards me. Well, I had a record out at the [time] called With These Hands, it was a ballad, it was a beautiful song, and Elvis is walking towards me going 'with these hands, I will cling to you', and I thought if the boys back home could see me now."
Naturally, despite Tom's awkward moment, he developed a strong friendship with Elvis. The two became extremely close mates and frequently sang together, sometimes for several hours at a stretch.
However, they never formally recorded a duet for public release. Their performances together remained private affairs, typically taking place at home or in Las Vegas hotel suites.
The clip has since gone viral online, racking up thousands of views and sparking a flood of reactions. Hundreds of fans have weighed in with their responses.
One fan remarked: "Tom Jones is a big star in his own right, but still remains humble when he meets other stars."
Another chimed in: "Goes to show how great Elvis was among all the world's biggest stars."
A third observed: "This man is an actual living legend who should be treasured."
Whilst a fourth enthused: "I could listen to Tom all day. He has some great stories from back in the day."
Another admirer also noted: "Beautiful and gorgeous story. Love Tom."