s removal looked like it was set in stone, with Jones himself explaining, “The reason given is because of a financial difficulty with insurance. They now say in the press they wanted to ‘refresh’ the show, and with a new coaching line-up there wouldn’t be a chair for me.”
Now, a petition demanding Jones’ reinstatement has received over 65,000 signatures from around the world
Though the petition was started by 50-year-old superfan Aaron Howlett, it’s now being championed by Jones’ fellow judge, Will.i.am.
The Black Eyed Peas founder endorsed the petition via social media, where he teamed up with Change.org to encourage his 1.6 million followers to sign the petition.
The ‘What’s New Pussycat?’ singer revealed that he was offered “a much-reduced role where I would make an appearance but without being actually involved from the start, and I’m not thrilled about it.”
His statement concluded, “So the only thing I know right now, is that there’s never a good time to fire an 86-year-old who’s still pretty good at his job.”
A spokesperson for The Voice previously insisted, “We have loved working with Sir Tom Jones over the past nine years on The Voice UK. While he will no longer be a full-time coach on series 15, we continue to talk to Sir Tom and his team about his involvement in the next series.”
The next series of The Voice UK is currently in production in Manchester with new judges Cheryl and Aitch.
