Sir Elton John: ‘I’m grateful for the years of sex and drugs but I despise looking back on them’

Elton John has said he is “grateful” for years of sex and drugs as it has made him a better person.

The pop legend, 72, has previously spoken at length about his drug addiction and how later he became clean.

Now in a new interview he said he now appreciates that time as it led to him meeting his husband, David Furnish, and the life they share now.

He told GQ Hype magazine: "If I hadn’t gone through what I did then I wouldn’t have become the person I am now. So in a way, I’m grateful for those years of sex and drugs, although I despise looking back on them.

He added: "I had a good time at the beginning, but at the end it was just awful. But if I hadn’t have gone through them, I wouldn’t be sitting here having the great life I have now. I would have never met David [Furnish]. I would never have had children. I spent 16 years getting f***ed up and 29 years getting better."

The interview comes as Sir Elton releases his new autobiography, Me, which hits shelves tomorrow.

The book details his life from his early beginnings in Pinner, north west London, to his life today as a settled father of two.

The star began his relationship with Furnish in 1994 and the pair got married in 2014 after gay marriage became legal in England - nine years after they had a civil partnership.

Their eldest son, Zachary, was born in 2010, and their youngest, Elijah, was born in 2013.