Rod Stewart, aged 81, has announced his final tour titled "The Final Encore," scheduled to start in April 2027 across the UK and Europe, concluding in Hanover, Germany. He emphasizes this will be the last of his extensive touring career spanning over six decades, though he leaves open the possibility for future one-off performances. Stewart's current health issues, including inflamed vocal cords and a heart procedure, have previously led to tour cancellations and rescheduling.
Written locally by qwen2.5:14b on 2026-09-28,
using this article's own text rather than the other coverage of the
same event (that is the story summary below).
Story summary
Rod Stewart, the iconic British singer known for hits like "Every Picture Tells a Story," has announced his final tour, titled "The Final Encore Tour," which will kick off in April 2027 across the UK and Europe. The 81-year-old artist, who has been performing since the early 1960s, confirmed that this will be his last major touring endeavor after more than six decades on stage. Stewart's upcoming tour includes stops in Belfast, Glasgow, Birmingham, Manchester, London, and ends in Hanover, Germany. He expressed gratitude to fans for making his career possible but noted the physical toll of touring after health issues, including a heart procedure, prompted medical advice to take a break from intense routines.
Written for “Rod Stewart Final Tour Announced” on 2026-10-05,
grounded in this article and the 1 other(s) covering the same event.
Rod Stewart has announced that his next tour will be his last.
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tour → announce → ?
The 81-year-old singer has been touring since the early 1960s, when he set out across Europe with a harmonica – and ended up getting deported from Spain for vagrancy – in a duo with folk singer Wizz Jones.
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he → tour → Jones
But while he hasn’t ruled out one-off gigs in the future, the touring element of his career is coming to an end with Rod Stewart: The Final Encore, a tour of the UK and Europe beginning April 2027.
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element → rule → April
The arena run includes UK dates in Belfast, Glasgow, Birmingham, Manchester and London, and after an extensive European run, finishes up in Hanover, Germany, in July.
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run → include → July
Promising “one hell of a show”, Stewart said: “The time has come to say farewell to life on the road.
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time → promise → road
I’ve been singing the music I love since I was 19 years old, and I’ve had the privilege of taking it around the world to all of you.
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I → sing → you
It has given me a life beyond anything I could ever have imagined, and I hope I’ve given you some fond memories in return.
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I → give → return
So, may I take this opportunity to thank you for making this extraordinary life possible.”
Stewart still has a couple of live dates currently scheduled for after the end of the tour, in Red Rocks, Colorado, in September 2027.
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Stewart → take → September
Those are dates he was forced to reschedule from June this year, due to inflamed vocal cords.
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he → force → cords
He later paused a concert in Utah to use an oxygen mask after nearly fainting during the performance, then cancelled the remainder of the tour after undergoing a heart procedure.
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He → pause → procedure
Earlier on the One Last Time tour, in 2025, he had to cancel concerts due to flu, Covid and strep throat, and for needing vocal rest.
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he → have → rest
It looked like his Glastonbury “legends slot” performance was at risk of cancellation due to flu, but he went through with the gig.
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he → look → gig
A Guardian review described him as being “in good voice, especially given he cancelled gigs …
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he → describe → gigs
It helps that he’s never had a clear or stereotypically youthful voice to begin with; the years show, mostly, in his struggle to sustain long notes.”
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years → help → notes
It also heralded him as “a physical performer, writhing and launching around like one of the leggier Muppets”.
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It → herald → Muppets
Stewart has been touring since his teens.
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Stewart → tour → teens
After his duo with Jones, he spent time shuttling between groups such as Jimmy Powell & the Five Dimensions, Steampacket and Shotgun Express before joining the Jeff Beck Group, and then Faces.
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he → spend → Group
His solo career began in earnest at the close of the 1960s, and Stewart became a huge commercial success: after 1971’s chart-topping Every Picture Tells a Story, all but one of his 29 studio albums since have reached the UK Top 10.
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all → begin → Top
The most recent, 2024’s Swing Fever – a collaboration with Jools Holland – reached No 1.
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recent → reach → No
Though Stewart may be retiring from touring, he could well release more studio projects.
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he → retire → projects
He told Desert Island Discs that he and former Faces bandmate Ronnie Wood had “songs that we’re working on from back in the day, but it’s hard to make our times tally.
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times → tell → day
When we do get a chance to get in the studio again, we will finish off these songs.
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we → get → songs
We’ve got a good body of songs going.”
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body → get → songs
The Aporia
