I was a shell of a person after cancelling gigs, admits Adele

IN AN emotional return to her hometown, Adele was welcomed by ecstatic fans in London’s Hyde Park this weekend in her first UK gig in five years.

However, after what she described as a “brutal” backlash to the cancelling of her Las Vegas show earlier this year, the singer disclosed that she felt like a “shell of a person” for months.

In January, Adele made a tearful announcement postponing 24 concerts just 24 hours before the opening night at The Colosseum at Caesars Palace.

Speaking on BBC Radio 4’s Desert Island Discs, she said she had been afraid of letting people down but stood by her decision, as the show was not ready. But she said the backlash was difficult to handle.

Some fans were furious after losing large amounts of money on Las Vegas flights and hotel bookings.

“I was a shell of a person for a couple of months,” said Adele. “I just had to wait it out and just grieve the shows and get over the guilt, but it was brutal.”

She added: “I definitely felt everyone’s disappointment and I was devastated and frightened about letting them down and I thought I could pull it together and make it work, and I couldn’t, and I stand by that decision.

“You can’t buy me, you can’t buy me for nothing. I’m not going to just do a show because I have to or because people are going to be let down. I’m like, ‘the show’s not good enough’.”

Adele chose an inflatable mattress as her luxury item on Desert Island Discs and The Sun and Her Flowers by Rupi Kaur as her book. Among her castaway tracks were Dreams by Gabrielle and Bills, Bills, Bills by Destiny’s Child.

She also spoke about her dramatic weight loss and how exercise gives her an outlet for anxiety. The fans’ reaction to her new body shape was not always positive. “Most other people would have a DVD out by now – I did it on the quiet for myself,” she said.

“There were some people who felt very betrayed by me, being like ‘she’s given in to the pressure of it’. It didn’t really bother me because you ain’t holding my hand at 4am when I’m crying my heart out with anxiety.”

Adele said she remains good friends with her ex-husband Simon Konecki, with whom she has a son, and is currently in a relationship with the American sports agent Rich Paul. She said she would love to have more children.

Reflecting on the death of her estranged father last year, she said it was one of the “biggest moments” in her life. Speaking about their final meeting, she said: “He was really bloody funny. We laughed, we gossiped, we cried. It was great for both of us.”