Engelbert Humperdinck Recalls How a Shoelace Saved His Life

British singer Engelbert Humperdinck recently shared a remarkable story from his past service in the British Army, revealing how an undone shoelace saved his life. During an episode of “The Engelbert Humperdinck Show,” the 90-year-old singer reminisced about his time in the army, which began when he enlisted in 1954 at the age of 18.

Humperdinck recounted how he hoped to be stationed in Cyprus, as a friend was already there, but he was instead sent to Germany. He explained the assignment process, saying, “The way they choose people when you’re in training, you form a rank of threes. The adjutant goes around with the sergeant major and counts out 24 people. They’ll say Cyprus, Germany, Belgium or wherever you’re going to.”

“I think God was watching over me because, later on, I found out all the people that went to Cyprus never got there. They got killed in an ambush on the way to Nicosia.”

As the soldiers lined up for assignments, Humperdinck noticed his shoelace had come undone. He paused to tie it and joined the line, awaiting his assignment. The ranks were being counted: Malaya, Cyprus, and Humperdinck would have been next—Germany. He narrowly missed being sent to Cyprus by one person.

The singer said, “It was unbelievable that I wasn’t in that batch because I only missed it by one.” Serving in Mulheim, Germany, turned out to be “an interesting couple of years” for him.

Humperdinck, born Arnold George Dorsey, achieved significant musical success starting in 1967 with his song “Release Me,” which topped the U.K. charts. His illustrious career includes selling over 140 million records globally, earning four Grammy nominations, a Golden Globe award for entertainer of the year, and a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame.

Reflecting on his career, he told Billboard in June 2017, “I never thought that. I was just happy to have success at that time. It was always a question in my head about how long it was going to last.” He emphasized the importance of lasting musical material, stating, “If you don’t put out material that’s going to last, you’re not going to last.” Over the years, his music became his “passport to the world.”