Elton John and husband David Furnish’s non-negotiable parenting rule for sons Zachary and Elijah

Sir Elton John and his husband David Furnish are proud parents to two sons, Zachary and Elijah, whom they welcomed via surrogate in 2010 and 2013 respectively.

The family relish spending quality time together, particularly whilst at the dinner table where David and Elton have introduced a strict, non-negotiable rule.

Speaking on River Cafe owner’s Ruthie Rogers podcast, David, 62, explained: “Meals are sacred. So, no phones at the table. No television on in the background.

“It’s all about conversation. It’s all about connection. It’s where we catch up because we all have busy lives, and we hear about each other’s days.

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He continued: “And during lockdown, where we were with the boys three meals a day, when we just talked all the time about what was going on in the world and told funny stories, or learned about his history, or my history. And the food is part of that which brings you together.”

Elton and David, who tied the knot in 2014, are notoriously private about their two sons. Their eldest Zachary Jackson Levon Furnish-John was delivered via surrogate in 2010. They used the same surrogate to welcome their second child, Elijah Joseph Daniel-Furnish in 2013.

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Despite keeping much of their family life under wraps, the ‘Crocodile Rock’ hitmaker has credited his two sons with changing his life “for the better”.

During a candid chat with attitude magazine, the 77-year-old said: “Having the children changed everything for the better because now it’s all about them. It’s all about their welfare and their future and it’s not about me and it’s not about him.”

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He continued: “We’re very comfortable in our relationship. We get better and better and better, but it’s the children that just really inspire us and it’s the most wonderful time of my life at the moment, and that’s pretty amazing.”

David and Elton’s love story

The power couple have been together for 30 years. David and Elton first crossed paths in the early 90s when they were introduced at a dinner party. 

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They embarked on a whirlwind romance and entered a civil partnership in December 2005, before later tying the knot nine years later once gay marriage was legal in the UK.

Find out the secret to their happy marriage in the video below… 

The pair went on to welcome two sons – a decision which Elton has described as the “greatest” they’ve made in the last six years. On the Today Show, Elton said: “That was the greatest decision I’ve made — well — we’ve made, in the last six years, is to have those boys… Our primary concern. They’re the things that come first and foremost.”

The family spend most of their time at their sprawling Windsor family home which Elton purchased for £400,000 following the success of his Goodbye Yellow Brick Road album.