Elton John holds hands with husband David Furnish

Elton John and his husband David Furnish showed their marriage is stronger than ever as they departed their £23 million yacht hand-in-hand on Sunday with their rarely-seen sons Zachary, 14, and Elijah, 12.

The couple held hands with David, 62, gently guiding his husband, 78, who has experienced significant vision loss in his right eye due to a severe infection. He revealed in September that the infection left him with ‘limited vision in one eye’.

The couple were joined by their pals Aaron Taylor-Johnson, 35, and his wife Sam, 58, as they departed the custom-built yacht Wabi Sabi to head out for the afternoon in France.

The music legend famously retired from touring in 2023 after a record-breaking farewell run of shows to spend more time with his two children, who were last seen in public during the 2023 Farewell Yellow Brick Road tour.

The Rocketman hitmaker showed off his laid-back sense of style in a pale blue shirt and matching shorts, while David opted for a bold shirt covered with a palm print.

Aaron, who has been at the centre of frenzied speculation that he could be the next James Bond, was a far cry from 007 as he showed off his rugged new appearance.

He and Sam were seen disembarking the luxurious yacht alongside their two daughters Wylda and Romy.

Elton told Attitude last year that his sons Zachary and Elijah were the main reason behind his decision to retire from touring.

He said: ‘I’ve done nearly over 5,000 shows in my life and I’ve done all there is to do, and so I just knew that my boys [sons Zachary and Elijah] and David needed me, and I need them…

‘Having the children changed everything for the better because now it’s all about them. It’s all about their welfare and their future and it’s not about me and it’s not about him.’

While Elton has been enjoying some well-deserved downtime on his yacht in France, the music legend recently poured cold water on rumours that he’s planning a flashy ABBA-style hologram concert.

Hopeful supporters began speculating after spotting trademark documents for his name covering holograms, video projections and immersive 3D virtual reality experiences. 

But according to reports, those close to the Tiny Dancer singer have made it clear there’s no such show in the pipeline.

Elton has long made his stance clear, previously admitting in 2018 that the idea wasn’t for him. 

However, during his Farewell Yellow Brick Road tour, he did briefly dabble in the digital world with a London pop-up at King’s Cross, which featured an augmented reality version of him playing the piano.

When quizzed about the stunt at the time, according to The Sun, the music legend laughed off the suggestion, branding himself a ‘Luddite’ and joking he’d never downloaded anything in his life – ‘not even porn.’

While acts such as KISS and The Rolling Stones have embraced the futuristic hologram trend – with Mick Jagger cheekily noting you can ‘have a posthumous business now’ – Elton is sticking firmly to the real deal.

Fresh from wrapping his mammoth final tour, he’s been back in the studio, releasing Who Believes in Angels with Brandi Carlile in April. 

It comes after the music legend celebrated 35 years of sobriety last month with handmade cards from his sons Zachary and Elijah.

The singer, who once admitted he ‘would be dead’ had he not sought help with his addictions, rang in the milestone with his family.

Sharing his gratitude in an Instagram update, Elton marked the milestone at home with his husband David Furnish and their sons.

He uploaded a photo of the cards and flowers he had received from his close friends and relatives.

‘Grateful for all the love on my sobriety birthday,’ Elton captioned.

The musician has been very open about his battle with alcohol and drugs which nearly derailed his career and cost him his life.

Speaking in an interview in December, Elton said he treated former lovers ‘like hostages,’ behaved like an ‘a**hole’ and was unable to operate household appliances without help until he was well into his forties because of his issues with addiction.

The legendary singer-songwriter made a series of startling admissions about his personal life in TIME magazine.

Discussing at length a crippling addiction to alcohol and cocaine at the height of his fame in the 1970s and ’80s, Sir Elton admitted there were numerous casualties before his eventual rehabilitation in the ’90s – among them his former partners.

‘You make terrible decisions on drugs, he explained. ‘I wanted love so badly, I would just take hostages.

‘I’d see someone I liked and spend three or four months together, and then they would resent me because they had nothing in their life apart from me. It really upsets me, thinking back on how many people I probably hurt.’