Sir Tom Jones: “I did not want to leave The Voice”

Sir Tom Jones has insisted that he wanted to continue as a coach on ITV’s The Voice after he was dropped for the 2027 series.

Earlier this week it emerged that the veteran crooner, 86, had been dropped from the panel for the next series – with the new-look lineup rumoured to be will.i.am, Kelly Rowland, Cheryl and Aitch.

Reports had suggested that ITV had been looking to feature Jones later in the series in a limited capacity, but in a social media post he revealed that he had rejected the idea.

“To be clear, I did not want to leave The Voice as I love the show and really appreciate the audience,” he wrote.

“ITV made this decision – obviously a while ago, and I was told just recently. The reason given is because of a financial difficulty with insurance. They now say in the press they wanted to ‘refresh’ the show, and with a new coaching line-up there wouldn’t be a chair for me.

“They are offering a much-reduced role where I would make an appearance but without being actually involved from the start, and I’m not thrilled about that.

“So the only thing I know right now, is that there’s never a good time to fire an 86-year-old who’s still pretty good at his job.”

An ITV spokesperson said: “We have loved working with Sir Tom Jones over the past nine years on The Voice UK.

“While he will no longer be a full-time coach on series 15, we continue to talk to Sir Tom and his team about his involvement in the next series.”

Filming for the 2027 series is due to get underway in Manchester this Friday.