Phil Collins says he cannot see himself performing live again

By Carla Feric, Press Association Entertainment Reporter

Music star Phil Collins has said that he cannot see himself performing live again.

The former Genesis frontman last took to the stage in 2022, having suffered from health complications, including five operations on his knee, and has previously stated he can only walk with assistance.

The veteran rocker, 75, has also suffered from back and arm injuries throughout his life caused by years of drumming.

Appearing on BBC Breakfast on Friday, the musician said: “I’m healthier now than I have been for quite a while.

“The last 18 months has been fine. Before that, not so good.

“Everything health-wise caught up with me at the same time. Everything that could go wrong did go wrong, but everything is fine now.

“I had problems with my knee, which I had for a while but I played through it, I toured through it. But eventually I had to have a knee operation and I had to have it done five times because it either kept getting infected or it broke.”

Collins, whose hit songs include In The Air Tonight, You Can’t Hurry Love and I Don’t Care Anymore, has kept a low profile amid his health complications but was asked whether he thinks he will perform again.

He said: “I can’t really see it happening, but I’m healthier now than I have been for quite a while.”

The rocker is set to be inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame this year, which will be his second since he was previously honoured as a member of Genesis in 2010.

Speaking about the induction ceremony in November, Collins said: “I mean, this Rock and Roll Hall of Fame thing, they asked me if I would perform and I said no cos you’ve got to be match fit to do something like that.

“You can’t just go onstage – you have to rehearse, and by that point if you’ve not been singing then your voice is going to be shot, and then that’s not going to be good, so I’d rather not do it.

“But whether I’d go out again (to perform), I would contemplate, yes.”

“I’m constantly saying to myself I’ve got to go back down to my studio at home”, the rocker added, and admitted he has “lots of lyrical ideas” for new music and “things I would like to get my teeth into”.

Collins appeared in a BBC documentary in January to celebrate his 75th birthday, during which he was asked about whether he would return to performing and said: “Never say never.”

The rocker also opened up about his health issues during the documentary and revealed he has suffered from Covid as well as problems with his kidneys, and that he has “a 24-hour, live-in nurse”.

Collins has had a career spanning almost six decades, during which he became the only artist to perform at both Wembley Stadium in London and JFK Stadium in Philadelphia for the dual-venue Live Aid charity concerts in 1985.

Reflecting on this, he told the BBC: “I remember it very well. Someone said, ‘well you could get (a Concorde flight) and do both’ and I said OK.

“I said, ‘I’m not the only person doing it cos that will look like showing off’ and they said no, no, no.”

Collins added: “Retrospectively, you can look at (the performances) and say it bonded the two events.”

As a solo artist, Collins has achieved three UK number one singles and won many accolades including six Brit Awards and eight Grammys.

He has five children including Nicholas, who has drummed for him on tour, and actress Lily Collins, the star of Emily In Paris.