6. The Faces were so wild they had to adopt false identities

The party would continue back at the hotel, so we weren’t allowed in any hotels. We used to have to check in as Fleetwood Mac

Ronnie reflects on his time in The Faces with Rod Stewart

Life with Rod Stewart in The Faces was one long knees-up. “The song Had Me a Real Good Time summed us up,” Ronnie laughs. “We’d hand out wine or champagne, get the whole audience on the same wavelength.” But hotels weren’t keen on the riotous atmosphere. “The party would continue back at the hotel, so we weren’t allowed in any hotels. We used to have to check in as Fleetwood Mac.”

7. He joined The Rolling Stones by chance

Ronnie’s entry to the Stones happened at a party sitting on a sofa between frontman Mick Jagger and guitarist Mick Taylor. “Mick Taylor leaned over and said, ‘I’m leaving the band.’ And he got up and left. Mick [Jagger] looked at me and said, ‘Oh my God, what am I gonna do? Would you join?’ And I said, ‘I thought you’d never ask!’”

8. He’s the Stones’ peacemaker and steps in at the first signs of tension

“I just don’t stand for any messing around,” he tells Lauren. “If I see something that’s going to be destructive, I nip it in the bud.”

When Mick Jagger and Keith Richards stopped speaking in the eighties, it was Ronnie who fixed it. “Mick was saying, ‘He hates me.’ I said, ‘No, he doesn’t. In 15-minutes the phone’s going to ring. It’ll be Keith and you’re going to speak.’ Mick said, ‘I don’t think you can make that happen.’ I rang Keith: ‘You’re going to call Mick right now.’ He did. Mick rang me back and said, ‘Wow, we actually patched it up!’”

9. Beatles versus Stones? Not for Ronnie

The famous rivalry between The Beatles and The Rolling Stones didn’t exist for Ronnie. He always had a close relationship with George Harrison – “a lovely man” – and Ringo Starr, and he picks Paul McCartney’s song Maybe I’m Amazed as his eighth disc on the show.

“I’m very close with Paul. We have lots of dinners together.” Paul was even best man alongside Rod Stewart at Ronnie’s wedding in 2012.

Ronnie also met John Lennon in New York once. “He knocked on my door with Yoko. We went down to Atlantic Studios and played the night away. Wonderful time.” What happened to those tapes? “Good question. That studio was remodelled or rebuilt so the tapes were just lost.”

10. He always has a surprise in his top pocket

Ronnie’s dad was a born entertainer, often telling stories and jokes at the house parties he hosted. He always kept a harmonica in his top pocket – a habit that Ronnie has now adopted, as he proves when he pulls it out to serenade Lauren in the studio.

He also wants to sneak it onto the desert island in addition to his luxury. “You wouldn’t even know about it. Just don’t count the harmonica, otherwise I’m not getting washed up!”