Elvis made secret trip to London

CONTRARY to popular belief that he never set foot on English soil, it has emerged that Elvis Presley made a secret visit to here in 1958.

During the height of his fame, The King went on a sightseeing trip of London, taking in the Houses of Parliament and Buckingham Palace in the company of British singer Tommy Steele.

It was always thought that the closest Presley ever got to England was a brief stopover at Prestwick airport in Scotland in 1960, on his way home from his army base in Germany.

However, theatre producer and friend of Steele, Bill Kenwright told Radio 2's Ken Bruce show Tracks Of My Years: "Shall I tell you a little story that I know and you don't know and nobody knows?

"Elvis came to England. Nobody thinks he did and I hope Tommy doesn't go mad when I tell you.

"Tommy got a phone call one night. It said: 'They tell me you're good' and Tommy replied: 'Who's this?'

"The caller said: 'It's Elvis,' and Tommy said: 'Get outta here.' And Elvis said: 'Are you as good as me?'

"And they talked and they got a friendship. Elvis flew in for a day.

"Tommy showed him round London... showed him the Houses of Parliament and spent the day with him."

Cockney singer Steele, now 71, said that he had promised never to reveal the visit in public and that he regretted that it had come out in the open.

He told the Daily Mail newspaper: "What actually happened many years ago is something secret and memorable.

"It was an event shared by two young men sharing the same love of their music and the same thrill of achieving something unimaginable.

"I swore never to divulge publicly what took place and I regret that it has found some way of 'getting into the light'. I can only hope he can forgive me.'