Singer and Hollywood star Luke Evans has opened up about the heartbreakingly emotional time he sang to his beloved nan just before she passed away when he couldn't make it home due to the Covid pandemic.
Talking about his love of music and how it connects him to home in Wales, the Aberbargoed-raised star of AppleTV's Echo3 spoke openly from the heart about the time he couldn't be at his nana Lewis' bedside and instead sang her a song goodbye, knowing she would connect the sound of him singing with 'her boy', despite having dementia.
With the star talking about his brand new album, A Song For You, Luke revealed how important music and singing was to him and his family, especially with him filming around the world and generously spoke about his nan, Enid. He said: "I've always found music has been something that I've always enjoyed to do for my family. And when my grandmother, my Nana Lewis, Enid, died, I was in Australia.
"She'd had dementia, Alzheimer's, for many, many years. And the last few years of her life, where really it had taken everything away from her and finally her body was giving up and I wasn't there. I was very close, I am very close to my grandparents, and I'm the oldest grandchild and I love them dearly. It's incredible in my 40s to have grandparents still, I cherish them and I used to send them postcards from anywhere I was in the world, you know.
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"But there was one thing, and this is what brings it back to music, is my nan the night before she died, my mam had called me to say that, 'Nana is going to probably pass away today. She hasn't woken up in a few days.' So I called... FaceTimed. She was laying in bed, my mam was there and we put her phone next to Nana's ear and I sang a song. It was the only thing I thought I could do. I can't talk to her..I can. But the thing that I connected with my grandmother, especially during the days of Alzheimer's was my music. When they played my songs, my grandmother connected it immediately to me, and to the sense of pride. And it's 'what a voice that's my boy,' even when she didn't recognise anybody else."
Luke went on to say that his nan passed away the next morning but that his connection to her through music was undeniable as she woke up as her grandson sang to her. "She knows me and I thought well, if this is the last time I speak to my grandmother, I should sing a song. So I did," he added. "I sang a song and the next morning she died. So it was the last time [I spoke to her] and she woke up by the way, she woke up during the song she opened her eyes. I knew that it was music that I had left with her that connected us, you know and kept to this tiny thread. And sadly what dementia does is takes away all those threads of remembrance, but with me and my nan, I had this music and my voice that she will always remember..."
While many movie and TV-lovers may know Luke for his roles in Nine Perfect Strangers, The Pembrokeshire Murders, Beauty and the Beast, The Hobbit Trilogy and more recently the new Pinocchio on Disney+ and Netflix's Scrooge: A Christmas Carol, musical theatre and singing is where he first found his feet. And after first appearing in West End in shows like Rent and Miss Saigon he's now written songs for his latest album as well as recording duets with pals Charlotte Church and Nicole Kidman. His love of music stems from a young age, from playing his dad David's old LPs to singing in the Kingdom Hall as his family were part of the Jehovah's Witness community when he was growing up and, of course the natural Welsh propensity to sing - something which he is more than happy to share with the world, exposing his fans around the globe to Welsh hymns at a time where the Welsh language is centre stage with Wales being in the World Cup.
Speaking about recording Calon Lan with the Treorchy Male Choir, Luke said: "The song is just so magical, and you know what's unusual, it's everyone's favourite track on the album and people don't even know what it's about. In a language they've never heard. What's wonderful about this album is I had this opportunity to record an album that will be internationally sold to an audience who many never have heard the Welsh language, which is beautiful, but when it's sung - it's exquisite."
You'll be able to hear Luke and the Treorchy Male Choir on the actor's BBC Christmas special, Luke Evans Showtime!, an hour-long special which will be broadcast in December on BBC One Wales and BBC Two. On that festive show Luke will be performing tracks from the album and will be joined by LeAnn Rimes, Olly Murs and Beverly Knight, plus some other guest appearances throughout the show.
For more from Luke on his pride in Wales, his thoughts on that 007 role and loads more, come back for our full interview with him on WalesOnline and in the Western Mail Saturday Magazine on December 3.
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