Lewis Capaldi makes emotional return to Glastonbury stage following career hiatus two years after Tourette’s battle left him unable finish his set at the festival

Lewis Capaldi choked back tears as he declaring ‘I’m back baby’ during his emotional return to Glastonbury’s iconic Pyramid Stage for a secret set on Friday.

The Scottish singer, 28, was greeted with cheers from the huge Worthy Farm crowd, two years after his battle with Tourettes left him unable to finish his perfomance at the festival and led to a career hiatus. 

Delighted to back in front of an audience he tearfully said: ‘Two years ago I wasn’t sure if I’d ever do this again, but I’m back baby!’’.

Lewis sung a number of his famous hits, before once chocking back tears as he performed brand new single Survive, which highlights the difficult period in his career following his last Glastonbury gig.

Fans in the crowd could be seen crying and calling out his name before joining him in a rendition of megahit Someone You Loved.

In his emotional speech, Lewis said: ‘Glastonbury it’s good to be back. Won’t say too much up here today as if I do I might start crying, but I can’t thank you enough for coming here and being with here. 

Lewis Capaldi, 28, choked back tears as he declaring ‘I’m back baby’ during his emotional return to Glastonbury’s iconic Pyramid Stage for a secret set on Friday

The Scottish singer was greeted with cheers from the huge Worthy Farm crowd, two years after his battle with Tourettes left him unable to finish his perfomance at the festival 

Delighted to back in front of an audience he tearfully said: ‘Two years ago I wasn’t sure if I’d ever do this again, but I’m back baby!’’ 

‘Second times a charm hey! It’s a short set today but just wanted to come and finish what I couldn’t last time, also this was like the worst kept f*****g secret ever’.

Following his emotional set at Worthy Farm in June 2023, the singer  took time off to focus on his mental health and to ‘adjust to the impact’ of his Tourette’s diagnosis.

It comes hours after Lewis shocked fans by announcing his comeback on Instagram, sharing a snippet of his new song and the Henry Dockrill directed accompanying music video.

Captioning his exciting post, he simply wrote: ‘It’s been a while…’ before directing his followers to the link to his song in his bio.

The short video features sweet moments throughout Lewis’ life and career, including snippets from his childhood.  

The new song has been described as a ‘brutally honest track that addresses mental health challenges of self-doubt and despair’, highlighting the difficult period in his career following his last Glastonbury performance. 

It features heartbreaking lyrics including: ‘Most nights I fear that I’m not enough, I’ve had my share of Monday mornings when I can’t get up.’

However, more defiant lines include: ‘I swear to God I’ll survive, if it kills me to, I’m gonna’ get up and try, if it’s the last thing I’ll do.’

Lewis sung a number of his famous hits, before once chocking back tears as he performed brand new single Survive, which highlights the recent difficult period in his career 

Following his emotional set at Worthy Farm in June 2023 (pictured) the singer took time off to focus on his mental health and to ‘adjust to the impact’ of his Tourette’s diagnosis  

Lewis once again teamed up with collaborator Romans for the track, with the songwriter having famously co-wrote Lewis’ megahit Someone You Loved.

The star’s announcement on Instagram sent his fans wild, with many sharing their excitement at his comeback in the comments.

They penned: ‘Can we all stand up and give this young man the around of applause he deserves, for stepping back and taking the time to seek the help he needed. What a role model. Welcome back Lewis. The world is a brighter place with you in it.’

‘God said “Let there be light” and he gave us our Lewis Capaldi back. Id be lying if I didn’t say I wasn’t crying. You have been so missed. I love you!!’

‘You’ve been so missed. We are all exactly where you left us ❤️’

‘Not me literally tearing up when I see a post from you again. I’ve missed you, but thank you for putting yourself first. Welcome back.’ 

Lewis previously announced he would be taking a break away from the spotlight for his mental health after performing at Glastonbury in June 2023 where he struggled with his Tourette’s symptoms. 

But earlier this month, the Mail on Sunday revealed that Lewis was set to return to the spotlight with a performance at this year’s festival, in the ‘secret slot’ on Friday at the Pyramid Stage after Alanis Morrisette.

And now it has been claimed that the Scottish star will release his first single since he dropped Strangers and A Cure For Minds Unwell in January last year, to coincide with his Glastonbury set

A source told The Sun: ‘Lewis took a decent chunk of time away and now he’s ready for his fans to hear what he has been working on. 

‘Tomorrow is a huge day for him. He will be releasing a brand new single and it is his Pyramid Stage performance. He is in a great place and feels ready to come back into the spotlight.’ 

The insider added that Lewis was ‘raring to go’ after taking a career hiatus to work on his mental and physical health.

They said: ‘Naturally there will always be nerves but he feels confident and assured. He is firing on all cylinders and there’s no doubt this single will go straight to No1, which will give Lewis a massive boost.’

During his last performance at Glastonbury two years ago, Lewis was coming out of a three-week mental health hiatus he had taken to ‘rest and recover’.  

Returning to the stage, the singer admitted he had been ‘s**t scared’ to perform as he opened up about his mental health struggles and battle against Tourette’s. 

The neurological condition is characterised by a combination of involuntary noises and movements called tics, and can cause speech and voice abnormalities.

In the middle of his set, Lewis confessed that he was struggling with his Tourette’s and said his voice had ‘packed it in’, after coughing throughout the show.

However, his supportive fans rallied around him, with the show coming to an heartwarming close as the supportive crowd sang out his hit Someone You Love at the top of their voices.

Lewis emotionally left the stage, saying: ‘Glastonbury, I’m really sorry. I’m a bit annoyed with myself’.

Afterwards, he announced he would be ‘taking a break for the foreseeable future’ as it was ‘obvious’ he needs to spend ‘much more time getting my mental and physical health in order’.

The hitmaker, who had been due to embark upon a world tour, explained he needed time to ‘adjust to the impact’ of living with Tourette’s, admitting it was ‘the most difficult [decision] of my life’. 

Lewis had charted his struggles with the condition in a documentary How I’m Feeling now, which aired in April 2023, two months before his breakdown at Glastonbury.

But he has teased that he would be back with new music, sharing a New Year’s Eve update in 2023 for fans where he said: ‘I’m really happy to say I’ve noticed a marked improvement in both since I decided to take some time off back in June.

‘For now I’m going to continue taking some time to carry on looking after myself, maybe writing some music and taking a moment to reflect on some of the most incredible years of my life.

‘I want to make absolutely sure I’m 100% before getting back out there again properly for more shows and doing what I love more than anything! 

‘These songs mean the world to me and I’d be gutted if I’d not been able to share them. Hope this tides you all over until we can get in a room and sing them together some day very soon!”

Lewis also thanked fans for their support, saying their reaction has been ‘nothing I’ve ever experienced and has made me more excited than ever to return to doing what I love at some point in the not too distant future’.

And last month, he took to the stage for a secret performance at the Assembly Rooms in Edinburgh last month – the first time he has performed Worthy Farm.

Headliner Tom Walker said Lewis made a ‘last minute’ decision to perform at the low-key gig, and fans were encouraged to ‘stick around’ for a surprise act.

He performed six songs, including his 2019 hit Someone You Loved, at the event, which was to help raise funds for the suicide prevention charity, Campaign Against Living Miserably (Calm).

Lewis released his first album, Divinely Uninspired to a Hellish Extent in 2019, followed by Broken by Desire to be Heavenly Sent in 2023, which debuted at No 1 with 95,000 sold, making it the fastest-selling album of the year.