Leicester’s Engelbert Humperdinck Turns 90 — and His Rolls-Royce Is Going to Auction

A 1970 Rolls-Royce Phantom VI once owned by Leicester-raised singer Engelbert Humperdinck is going under the hammer this month — as the man himself prepares to turn 90 years old next month, still touring, still recording, and now a viral phenomenon on TikTok.

The Car, the Auction, and the Blue Velvet Interior

The car is one of the rarest Rolls-Royces in existence. Only 374 Phantom VI models were ever built over a production run of more than 20 years — an average of just 15 or 16 per year — and buyers included members of European royal families and fellow singer Sir Tom Jones. Humperdinck owned this particular example, with its preserved blue velvet interior, for nearly four decades before parting with it in 2009.

It is now being auctioned on the Dutch online platform Catawiki, with bidding open until 26 April 2026. The estimate sits between €165,000 and €185,000 — roughly £143,000 to £161,000. The car comes with documentation confirming its ownership history, including a UK registration certificate issued in Humperdinck’s name. It is currently located in Slovakia.

Arjan Rietveld, a classic car specialist at Catawiki, said: “With only 374 units manufactured over more than twenty years, the Phantom VI is already a scarce find. When you factor in nearly four decades of ownership by a world-renowned musician like Engelbert Humperdinck, you have a vehicle that embodies both automotive heritage and pop culture.”

The car is one of 14 Rolls-Royces Humperdinck collected over his career. He, his manager Gordon Mills, and fellow singer Tom Jones became so well known for their cars during the 1960s and 70s that the trio were dubbed the “Rolls-Royce Brigade”.

Leicester’s Own: The Story Behind the Name

Arnold George Dorsey — born in Madras, British India, on 2 May 1936 — moved to Leicester with his family when he was ten years old, one of ten children. He grew up in the city, dropped out of school at 15, and began singing in working men’s clubs under the name Gerry Dorsey, scraping by financially in the early years.

It was in Leicester that he met the woman he would marry. He and Patricia Healey first encountered each other at the Palais de Danse, a nightclub in the city. They wed in 1964 and went on to have four children together.

His transformation into a global star came after he signed with manager Gordon Mills — the same man who managed Tom Jones — who persuaded him to adopt a new stage name. The name chosen was Engelbert Humperdinck, borrowed from the 19th-century German composer best known for the opera Hansel and Gretel. The singer, by his own account, accepted without protest. It proved to be one of the more inspired rebranding decisions in British pop history.

“Release Me” went to number one in 1967, selling more than a million copies. “The Last Waltz” topped the charts the same year. He accumulated eight UK Top 10 singles and two UK number one albums. By the end of the 1960s, he was one of the best-selling recording artists in the world.

His ties to Leicester have never weakened. In 2009, Leicester City Council awarded him the Honorary Freedom of the City, alongside author Sue Townsend and footballer Alan Birchenall. The University of Leicester gave him an Honorary Doctorate of Music in 2006. In 2010, he was among the first nine people honoured with a plaque on the Leicester Walk of Fame. He remains a Leicester City FC fan, still splits his time between a home in Great Glen, Leicestershire, and Los Angeles, and — as recently as last year — said he intended to keep touring globally “as long as God keeps the voice in.”

The TikTok Revival Nobody Predicted

In recent years, Humperdinck has experienced a remarkable second wave of popularity, driven almost entirely by a generation that was not born when his original hits were in the charts. His 1968 recording “A Man Without Love” was used in the BBC drama Call the Midwife, and then featured in the Marvel series Moon Knight — where it soundtracked a fight sequence in a manner that lodged itself in the cultural memory. The result was a TikTok trend, with over 70,000 videos on the platform using the track. For an 89-year-old singer born in British India and raised in Leicester, it is an extraordinary second chapter.

Leicester Does Not Celebrate Its Own Often Enough

Here is something worth saying plainly: Engelbert Humperdinck is one of the most commercially successful musicians ever to come out of Leicester, and the city has never quite known what to do with him. He is not the kind of figure that gets celebrated by the cultural establishment — he is too old-fashioned for that, too associated with middle-of-the-road ballads and sequinned suits and Las Vegas residencies. He is not edgy. He is not cool. He has never been fashionable in the way that some smaller acts with louder press offices have been.

And yet: two number one albums. Eight UK Top 10 singles. A career that began in the 1950s and is still going in 2026. Honorary freedom of the city. A 1968 song that went viral on TikTok 56 years after it was recorded. A collection of 14 Rolls-Royces. A stage name so preposterous it should not have worked and absolutely did. The man is, by any objective measure, a remarkable figure — and he is Leicester’s.

He grew up here. He met his wife here. He started singing here, in the working men’s clubs of a city that was not exactly the centre of the British music industry. He went on to outsell artists who came from far more celebrated musical cities, and he did it by being unapologetically himself. There is something quietly impressive about that.

The Rolls-Royce going to auction is a reminder that Engelbert Humperdinck’s story is still unfolding. He is approaching 90 and he is still touring. His music is on TikTok. His car is going under the hammer for potentially £160,000. Leicester should be proud of him — loudly, and without any embarrassment about the sequins.

We will keep an eye on how the auction goes, and on whatever Engelbert does next. At 89, it is safe to say he is not finished yet.

Have Your Say

Did you grow up with Engelbert Humperdinck’s music, or did you discover him through TikTok? Do you think Leicester gives him the recognition he deserves? Leave a comment below — and sign up for our free local news updates to stay across culture and heritage stories from across Leicestershire.