Earlier this month, on September 8, 2022, Queen Elizabeth II passed away. The king ruled the United Kingdom and the Commonwealth for 70 years.
During her reign, the Queen has met countless pop and rock stars throughout the ages. She even awarded The Beatles MBE Medals. However, she has never met the king of rock and roll himself: Elvis Presley. But it came very close once.
On September 25, 1962, The Crown Elvis was invited to attend the 1962 Royal Variety Performance.
It was a momentous year for engagement, as Elvis had joined the likes of Bob Hope, Cliff Richard, The Shadows, Eartha Kate and Cleo Lane on the London Palladium stage.
It is possible that the Queen herself did not order any of the squad to perform at the Royal Variety Performance, but the call from her people certainly went directly to his boss, Colonel Tom Parker.
Unfortunately, this was probably the worst thing that could happen to Elvis.
Parker is notorious for not allowing Elvis to leave the country (with the occasional exception of Canada).
He made sure to be involved in every part of the wandering king’s lifestyle. This means that he joined him on the way.
But because Parker was an illegal immigrant from Holland, he was afraid to leave the USA.
Without a passport, he feared he would be refused re-entry into the United States.
So, with that in mind, when the Queen’s invitation came, he had no choice but to decline the prestigious request.
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Steele kept the visit secret for decades, but in 2008 opened up about what really happened.
Elvis reportedly only landed in London for a few hours. During that time he found Steele and went out with him.
Steele recalls their meeting: “It was a joint event between two young men who shared the same love for their music and the same excitement at achieving the unimaginable.”
He added, “I swore not to reveal what happened and I’m sorry he found some way to ‘enter the light’. I can only hope he will forgive me.”
Elvis even had a specific question to ask Steele.
Elvis asked the star, “Are you as good as me?”
Steele apparently told Bill Kinwright, a theater producer he’s worked with over the years, exactly what happened.
He said: I remember [Tommy] He tells me when Elvis came to England very quietly. Apparently Tommy came home one night and the phone rang. A voice says: “They tell me that you are good.” Tommy says: “Who is this?” “Elvis,” says the voice. ‘Get outta here!’ Tommy says.
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