Holidaymakers nursing late-summer sun found more than cocktails and covers in Costa Adeje when a surprise singalong changed the night.
It began as another easygoing evening in a Tenerife bar, the kind where families drift in after dinner and live music hums along. Then a guitarist waved a punter to the mic. Phones rose. A familiar face stepped forward, and the mood shifted from background buzz to collective double-take.
Surprise at a Costa Adeje bar
Carly Leahy, 42, visiting from Blackpool with her two children, had stopped for a quick drink when the in-house guitarist invited a man out of the crowd for an Oasis favourite. The guest singer turned out to be former world champion Ricky Hatton, 46, whose boxing nights once drew Oasis brothers Liam and Noel to ringside seats.
For a few seconds, the room processed the reveal. Then came the warm ripple of recognition that tends to follow a British sports icon abroad. Hatton leaned into the microphone. Wonderwall began to roll. Holidaymakers grinned, filmed and sang from their tables, the kind of communal moment that bars in Tenerife seem built for.
It wasn’t a booked turn or a staged cameo. A tourist bar gained a headliner by chance, and the night took off.
The lyric stumble that charmed the crowd
Reality check: Hatton didn’t have the words down. He tripped over a key line, mumbled through a phrase, then doubled back by repeating a familiar bit to keep the chorus rolling. The melody and good humour did the heavy lifting while the room supplied the rest.
A short clip shared online shows him smiling through the muddle, the guitarist keeping time, and the audience obligingly carrying the verses. The scene played less like a performance and more like a pub singalong upgraded by an unexpected guest appearance.
| Moment | What happened |
|---|---|
| Invite to stage | The guitarist gestures to a man in the crowd |
| Reveal | Holidaymakers realise it’s Ricky Hatton |
| Tricky line | Words tangle, rhythm continues, crowd fills the gaps |
| Finish | Applause, selfies and a queue for pictures |
No karaoke glory, just a feel-good slip that brought the room together and delivered a story for the flight home.
Reactions: laughter, patience and plenty of phones
Leahy said she expected Hatton to know every line, given his long-standing links with the Gallagher brothers. She joked that someone should send him the lyrics before the next holiday crowd hands him a mic. Even so, she praised his manner once the song ended. He stayed for photos, chatted with people who approached and didn’t rush off. Her children “were over the moon”, and she decided not to ask for a picture to give him space.
Online comments took a generous tone. Many called him a “legend”, with others noting that he looked “up for a laugh” and “happy” to be part of a light-hearted moment. A few observed that he remains a better boxer than a singer—a verdict Hatton himself would likely endorse.
Why this moment resonated
- Shared nostalgia: a 1990s anthem that spans generations keeps any room singing.
- Celebrity proximity: people rarely see a sporting great at arm’s length, never mind on the same stage.
- Imperfection: small stumbles humanise famous faces and lower the room’s guard.
- Family setting: early-evening bars in Costa Adeje welcome children, so the surprise felt inclusive.
- British abroad: a familiar soundtrack unites strangers who share an island, a language and a holiday rhythm.
A boxer with music mates and a date in December
Hatton’s place in British sport is secure: a crowd-pulling champion whose big nights helped define a boxing era. He has long been linked socially with Liam and Noel Gallgher, which explains why some expected him to glide through the words. Instead, he leaned on the chorus and laughed off any stray lines.
He is also scheduled for a ring return in December. That looming date adds a neat layer to the Tenerife cameo: a fighter staying relaxed between camps, keeping his public close and his evenings loose without the rigour of a gym.
With a December comeback on the horizon, Hatton kept it light: one song, a few misfires and a room full of smiles.
How to handle a chance celebrity moment on holiday
Spontaneous encounters can become the highlight of a trip, but they go better with a bit of etiquette. If you find yourself two tables from a familiar face, the following approach keeps everyone comfortable.
- Ask before filming close-up, especially if children are around or the person is eating.
- Keep requests quick: one picture, a smile and a “cheers” usually wins the day.
- Don’t post locations in real time if the person looks unsettled or the crowd is growing.
- Read the room—if the celebrity is engaging, enjoy it; if not, leave them to their night.
- Sing along, don’t shout along. Let the moment breathe.
Why Costa Adeje sets the stage for nights like this
South-west Tenerife thrives on early evening street life. Family-friendly bars sit shoulder to shoulder with small venues where rotating musicians cover Britpop, soul and classic rock. The format invites participation: guitars, open mics and a crowd that skews British at this time of year. Add post-dinner energy, and you get the perfect conditions for a walk-up cameo that turns into holiday folklore.
If you’re planning a similar evening, arrive early for a table with a clear view of the stage, keep small notes for the tip jar, and expect the set list to lean towards singalong staples from the 1990s and 2000s. The odd surprise guest is a bonus, not a guarantee.
Beyond the clip: what the moment tells us
The Hatton singalong landed because it bridged two types of celebrity: the fighter known for grit and the fan with a favourite song. It also spoke to why Wonderwall endures as a social glue—people know enough of it to carry a room even when the lead stumbles. For parents like Leahy, the memory sits somewhere between family story and pub anecdote; for Hatton, it was a night off that briefly became a headline without turning into a circus.
For those looking ahead to December’s boxing calendar, the Tenerife clip offers a relaxed snapshot before the serious business returns. Training blocks intensify, media duties arrive, and casual nights out get rarer. Until then, count this as one of those small, sunny holiday stories that give a familiar anthem a fresh setting—and remind people that even the most battle-tested champions sometimes need the crowd to carry a verse.
Loved this. That lyric stumble made it feel like a real pub singalong 🙂 Hatton smiling through it while the crowd carried Wonderwall is exactly the holiday energy I needed to read about. More of this, fewer staged “surprises”, please!