Elton John lookalike to star in prostate cancer charity videos

David Bills began performing as the Rocket Man singer after dressing up for his brother's 40th birthday

An Elton John tribute act is to star in charity videos to raise awareness of prostate cancer after being diagnosed with the disease.

David Bills, 58, a quarry manager from Whitwick, Leicestershire, began performing as the Rocket Man singer after dressing up as the star for his brother's 40th birthday.

He now sings at charity and corporate events.

He had his prostate removed after being diagnosed in September 2020.

Sir Elton was also diagnosed with prostate cancer

"I went straight for the surgery and it gave me my life back," he said.

Mr Bills said he began performing professionally as Sir Elton after meeting a Pavarotti lookalike who invited him to perform as the singer.

He said, by coincidence, Sir Elton had also been diagnosed with prostate cancer in 2017.

Mr Bills is working with the charity Prostate Cancer Research in his role as Sir Elton in a series of online videos to highlight a new National Lottery-funded information website.

The website, called The Infopool, is run by the charity and contains details about prostate cancer, testing, treatment and clinical trials.

Mr Bills said a prostate cancer diagnosis could be overwhelming

"It doesn't matter if you are a superstar like Elton John or an everyday guy - being told you have prostate cancer can be overwhelming," he said.

"Infopool made sense of the medical jargon that had left me so confused and its videos of men in the same situation as me helped me emotionally."

Oliver Kemp, chief executive officer of the charity, said: "At Prostate Cancer Research we are committed to a world where people can be free from the impact of prostate cancer.

"Combined with the transformative research we fund, we believe the Infopool will help us achieve this vision."