Jeff Stelling revealed singer Sir Elton John was among his well-wishers this week as the presenter signed off from the “best job that anybody could possibly have wished for” at Soccer Saturday. Stelling announced last month his intention to stand down as anchor of the Sky Sports programme after almost 30 years and earmarked the final day of the Premier League season on Sunday as his last show. In the days leading up to his swansong, Stelling divulged he had messages of support from the likes of Gordon Strachan and Neil Warnock, plus a phone call from John, former chairman and director of Watford. Stelling, an unapologetic Hartlepool fan who frequently celebrated their goals on Soccer Saturday, said: “Somebody asked me the other day if I’d ever been starstruck and yeah, I was starstruck when Elton John rang me at home to say ‘Thank you very much for all you’ve done’. “He said ‘Every week I watch the show and every week you tell me Watford are losing and every week you tell me Hartlepool are losing so I feel like we’re kindred spirits’. There’s something in that, isn’t there?” After touching tributes from colleagues past and present in a video montage, Stelling was given a standing ovation by the punditry panel of Paul Merson, Clinton Morrison, Kris Boyd and Michael Dawson. Stelling, who had planned to quit last year before reversing that decision, briefly hid his emotions with a mask of himself and quipped: “This is tricky because I’ve changed my mind – just kidding. “I haven’t changed my mind this time.” Stelling was clearly moved by the highlights package Sky televised in the final minutes of the show after Everton retained their top-flight status and confirmed the relegations of Leeds and Leicester. Merson, Alan Mullery, Frank McLintock, Clive Allen, Charlie Nicholas, Phil Thompson and Matt Le Tissier passed on their congratulations, as did Chris Kamara, who in a nod to the catchphrase that has become synonymous with the pair and the show, said: “You are unbelievable, Jeff!” Stelling looked back fondly on his 30-plus years with Sky, in which he not only covered football but live snooker, darts, greyhound racing, pool and thanked everyone with whom he had worked. So that's it. Soccer Saturday will be back next season. I'll be watching...From me, goodbye Jeff Stelling In his farewell monologue, he added: “It’s been the best job that anybody could possibly have wished for. My wife takes great pleasure in saying ‘You are the luckiest man ever to take a breath’ and you know what? I don’t tell her this often but she’s right. “The principle success of Soccer Saturday is you lot at home, who have given us unswerving support – both for the programme and for me personally. “So that’s it. Soccer Saturday will be back next season. I’ll be watching – when Hartlepool are not playing. From me, goodbye.” Read More Charity boss speaks out over ‘traumatic’ encounter with royal aide Ukraine war’s heaviest fight rages in east - follow live Katie Taylor sets sights on Chantelle Cameron rematch and not retirement Mikel Arteta pleased to see Granit Xhaka given appreciation from Arsenal fans I apologise I didn’t do better – Sam Allardyce says sorry after Leeds relegated

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Jennifer Coolidge has revealed what she'd like to happen to one White Lotus character if the decision was in her hands. Warning: Spoilers ahead. The actress played the iconic Tanya McQuoid in seasons one and two of the hit HBO series, before falling to her death (quite literally). Tanya's fate was revealed in the finale when she fell off a yacht and banged her head on a dinghy. She ultimately drowned in the Ionian Sea and fans were distraught. Well now, Coolidge has lifted the lid on what she's like to happen with Greg, her spiteful on-screen partner. "My hope for Jon [Gries] is that he’s not finished with Greg," Coolidge told a Variety 'Actors on Actors' conversation with actor Jeremy Allen White. "I hope there’s some comeuppance for evil Greg. I think he should, I don’t know, end up in a meat-grinding machine." Sign up for our free Indy100 weekly newsletter She went on to speak about her "horrible ending" as Tanya. "Mike [White Lotus creator] did tell me that I was going to have a horrible ending. But he said it more like, ‘I’m sorry, Jennifer, but you’re going to have to die,'” she candidly shared. While it was difficult for Coolidge to part ways with Tanya, she did acknowledge that "Mike was looking for a big Italian opera ending, and it was big and dramatic, so he wanted me to die for many reasons." Coolidge continued: "I also think Tanya’s a lot. Maybe people would get sick of her on another season. Maybe people would be like, ‘Oh, my God. Get rid of Tanya!'" "But if Tanya could come back in any form, maybe she could come back as a seagull and poke Greg’s eyes out." Have your say in our news democracy. Click the upvote icon at the top of the page to help raise this article through the indy100 rankings.

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