Danny O’Donoghue has revealed a night out with Sir Tom Jones took a turn for the worse after the Irishman was unable to keep up with the Welsh star.
The Script star, 43, and legendary musician, 83, grew close after they starred on The Voice panel back in 2012 alongside fellow artists Jessie J and Will.i.am.
And after a night of straight champagne at the Lowry hotel in Manchester, Danny explained that he was left unable to keep up with Sir Tom’s drinking and ended up in hospital after his heart ‘flipped into a different rhythm’.
Despite being 40 years Danny’s senior it was he who couldn’t hack the heavy drinking as he recounted the night out in an interview with NME.
He explained that the pair were drinking from about midnight until six am, and every time they finished a bottle of champagne, Tom would order another and not let Danny leave the table until it was done.
The Script’s Danny O’Donoghue has revealed a drinking session with Sir Tom Jones left him hospitalised after his heart ‘flipped into a different rhythm’
He explained that the pair were drinking from about midnight until six am, and every time they finished a bottle of champagne, Tom would order another and not let Danny leave the table until it was done
The next morning he realised something was wrong, Danny explained: ‘I didn’t know what was going on so I went to the hospital – and I got atrial fibrillation from drinking nothing but champagne for six hours.’
According the NHS atrial fibrillation is a condition that causes an irregular and often fast heartbeat which can be triggered by drinking excessive amounts of alcohol.
Forced to take a few days off from filming The Voice in order to recover he continued: ‘It was my fault because I should have stopped drinking very early.’
Gushing over his admiration for the singer he added: ‘What an amazing career that guy’s had… And like all Welsh people they’re so down to earth, it’s easy to forget how big and how legendary Tom is but he makes you feel that way himself, but I really, really loved my time with him.’
Danny previously spoke fondly about his relationship with Tom and hinted at the incident back in 2019 in an interview with Weekend Magazine.
He recalled: ‘My dad, who’d been a musician in Ireland, had always told me stories about hanging out with Tom Jones and going drinking together, so it was amazing to verify them with him when we were on The Voice.
‘Tom has this thing where he says you never leave the table when there’s half a bottle, so it would get to halfway down and then he’d order another.
‘He’d say, “Frank Sinatra, Sammy Davis Jr, Elvis… they wouldn’t stand up. Donoghue, sit down!” You might think we were both drinking water on that show, but take a look back!’
The Script star, 43, and legendary musician, 83, grew close after they starred on The Voice panel back in 2012 alongside fellow artists Jessie J and Will.i.am
The next morning he realised something was wrong, Danny told NME: ‘I didn’t know what was going on so I went to the hospital – and I got atrial fibrillation from drinking nothing but champagne for six hours’ (pictured July 2023)
Gushing over his admiration for the singer he added: ‘…it’s easy to forget how big and how legendary Tom is but he makes you feel that way himself, but I really, really loved my time with him’ (pictured in 2009)
It comes after Danny recently opened up about turning to ‘drinking, smoking… everything’ after the death of his bandmate Mark Sheehan in 2023.
Lead guitarist Mark – who formed the band with Danny and drummer Glen Power in 2001 – passed away in hospital on April 14 last year from an undisclosed illness.
Speaking on Lorraine last month, Danny revealed that he went ‘off the rails’ after Mark died, turning to drink and cigarettes as he experienced a mental block.
But after a heavy drinking session in his native Ireland over Christmas, the singer decided to cut out alcohol and ‘face the grief stone cold sober’.
As a result of his sobriety, Danny moved past a writers’ block he had been experiencing and started writing new music, with a The Script album set to be released in August.
Since the passing of Mark, Danny said they have ‘retired the three piece’ and the band has recruited two new members, making it a foursome.
Lead guitarist Mark passed away in hospital on April 14 last year from an undisclosed illness (Mark pictured in 2014)
Mark formed the band with Danny and drummer Glen Power in 2001 (Pictured at the 2011 Jingle Ball)
Discussing his grief after Mark’s death, Danny said: ‘I went off the rails after Mark passed away like everybody does. I was out drinking, smoking, everything and I went through a mental block.
He later said: ‘I got back from a big drinking session over Christmas in Ireland and I just said “Enough is enough”. I want to face the grief stone cold sober because if you don’t, you’re only kicking it down the street.
‘January was a big one for me – I gave up drinking, smoking, caffeine, all the good stuff… I was only going to do it through January but here we are in May now and I feel better than ever.
‘I feel like I’m starting to come out from the black cloud a little bit now, hence the new music.’
