Elton John’s “iconic keyboard handstand” recreated for new Madame Tussauds London waxwork 

A new waxwork of Sir Elton John has been unveiled at Madame Tussauds in London, showing him doing his iconic handstand on a piano.

• READ MORE: The NME Big Read – Elton John: “I’m not interested in the past – not even Elton John’s past” 

Details of the new sculpture were shared today (December 20) and come on the heels of the new Elton John: Never Too Late documentary being shared on Disney+.

It has been nearly 48 years since the legendary singer, songwriter and pianist had his first waxwork shared for the London display in 1976. Now, in the latest model, Madame Tussauds has celebrated the artist’s 50 year career with one of their most ambitious designs to date.

In the new sculpture, Sir Elton is depicted in one of his classic ‘70s looks and shown midway through one of his iconic on-stage moves: pulling off a handstand while balancing on the keys of his piano.

The figure is styled from his look at the 1975 Midsummer Music one-day festival at Wembley Stadium, and shows him wearing a recreation of the the bejewelled Bob Mackie jumpsuit worn during the performance. It also comes with his signature flamboyant glasses and platform shoes, while the piano he is seen with is covered in 24,000 rhinestones.

A fully coloured waxwork of Sir Elton John performing his keyboard handstand has been unveiled at Madame Tussauds in London.

The figure is being released as the 77-year-old superstar releases his Disney+ documentary Elton John: Never Too Late, celebrating the end of his lengthy… pic.twitter.com/792cKbZRWw

— London Live (@LondonLive) December 20, 2024

The choice of post seen in the new waxwork has been described as Madame Tussauds’ “most structurally ambitious creation to date” and achieving “the gravity-defying feat of suspending mid-air in the legend’s signature keyboard handstand move from the era”.

Discussing the latest sculpture, Steve Blackburn, General Manager at Madame Tussauds London, said: “Elton John is a true living legend and a dazzling personality to behold, so we knew we had to go above and beyond for this figure. Capturing Elton’s phenomenal stage presence – and that iconic keyboard handstand – in figure form is quite the challenge, and the result is one of our most technically ambitious figures to date.

“It feels fitting to unveil this one-of-a-kind figure for the festive season and showcase the expert craftsmanship that’s gone in to deliver a pose that we have never done before! Elton is a star deserving of the grandest spotlight, and we’ve made sure that his figure captures the attention of everyone in the room – much like the icon himself.”

The new Elton John sculpture will be available to view at London’s Madame Tussauds from today (December 20). It joins other sculptures of iconic artists on display, including Freddie Mercury, David Bowie, Amy Winehouse and more.

In other news about Sir Elton, the new Never Too Late documentary was given a three-star review by NME, which described it as a “respectful and tender” way to “bookend his incredible performing career”.

“Never Too Late offers a solid recap of Elton John’s ’70s imperial phase,” it read. “But Never Too Late doesn’t capture Elton John’s complex personality – a mix of insecurity, impatience, talent, ambition and tremendous generosity.”

It continued: “Frankly, this film would benefit from a little more Elton sass. It’s not the definitive story of his career, but it does drive home that before he became the grande dame of pop, John was a trailblazer who took superstardom to a new level.”

Elsewhere, the artist has been hinting at new music, saying in a new interview that “The juices have never dried up”.

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