Sir Elton John shares two sons Zachary and Elijah with his husband David Furnish.

Close up of Elton John looking emotional

Elton John has opened up about his children Zachary and Elijah (Image: Getty)

Elton John has confessed he “mourned” his “little boy” after realising his sons, who he shares with husband David Furnish, 62, were growing up. “The boys were Lego crazy, then one day it just stopped. They never used to care about what they wore, then Zachary googled to see what people were wearing to the Coachella festival and ordered his outfit accordingly,” he said.

“We drove Zachary to senior school when he was 13… and I came back and burst into tears. David said, ‘What’s wrong?’ I replied, ‘I’ll never see my little boy again.’ I mourned the fact that I couldn’t pick him up any more because the kids have made all the difference to my life… It’s about the boys now. We’re making sure they’re OK, making sure they’re appreciative and not spoiling them too much because, you know, I’m Elton John,” he said in an interview with The Times.

Zachary Furnish-John looks into the distance while his brother Elijah Furnish-John holds a hat as they stand backstage at a show

Elton John lamented the fact his sons Zachary and Elijah are growing up (Image: Getty)

This isn’t Elton’s only moment of reflection in recent times. He has been quite vocal about the fact his age and health is weighing heavily on him.

In February during an appearance on BBC’s The Graham Norton Show he admitted he “lost it” and had to be consoled for 45 minutes when a new song forced him to face up to his own mortality.

The 78-year-old came close to tears making the emotional admission alongside collaborator Brandi Carlile, 43, while promoting their new album.

“Bernie Taupin (Elton’s lyricist) gave me a lyric for a song called, ‘When This Whole World Is Done With Me’, and I’m writing the verse (music) quite quickly, and I think this is a really lovely verse.

Elton John and David Furnish hold hands and smile standing beside each other as they pose on a red carpet

Elton John and husband David Furnish share two sons Zachary and Elijah (Image: Getty)

“And then I get to the chorus, and I find that it’s about my death, my demise. And as a 76 year old man, which I was at that time, and having children and having a husband, mortality, and you think about, ‘How long have I got? How long? I hope I’ve got much longer than maybe I’ve got [left].’

“And so by the time I got to the chorus and suddenly realised that I started singing it [and] I lost it for 45 minutes. It was a very, very heavy moment for me,” he confessed.

“After 45 minutes of being consoled, I was okay, but I recorded the next day… when you’re singing about being washed out to sea and the end of your life, it took me by surprise.

“It’s a really lovely song. I did it all in one take the next day. I just came in and did its vocal and piano at the same time,” he said.