Don't go breaking our hearts - how can Sir Rod and Sir Elton kiss and make up?

For Sir Elton John, sorry seems to be the hardest word - while his friend of many decades, Sir Rod Stewart, may well wish he'd never seen Elton's face.

The two music legends are allegedly 'not speaking' once again, as Sir Rod explained to a BBC Sounds podcast that Elton has 'stopped taking his calls' and says they can only communicate 'via the media' after the two fell out dramatically in 2018.

He joked "who?" to the host Nihal Arthanayake, and added "my old mucker!" Rod then explained, "He is my old mate. We don’t speak to each other much any more. I miss him."

Rod went on, "'I invited his sons to play on my football pitch and never got a reply. We have not spoken since. He just had a hip op so I wish him well. We still love each other" and he laughed "We have rows - we sort of almost speak through the press!"

Rod apologised to Elton in January for making a cutting remark about his biopic, Rocket Man, and joking about Elton's retirement tour.

Rod admitted, "I did email her and said: 'What, again dear?' And I didn't hear anything back."

Read more: Rod Stewart says men should 'absolutely' be given lessons about the menopause

The two singers nicknamed each other Sharon and Phyllis after being given the names by bluesman Long John Baldry in the late '60s, and still cattily refer to each other as 'she'- though on this occasion, it seems Rod may have gone too far.

He called Elton's later-postponed 'Farewell Yellow Brick Road' world tour a "dishonest" ploy to make money, adding that it "stinks of selling tickets", and criticised his old friend's decision as "Not rock and roll."

Elton had a witty pop back at the ageing rocker in his bestselling autobiography, Me, saying that Stewart had a "'f***ing cheek' lecturing him about 'rock and roll'.

Watch: Sir Elton John spotted with walking stick in public for first time

"I certainly didn't feel like I needed a lecture on the feral spirit of rock and roll from someone who'd spent most of the last decade crooning his way through the Great American Songbook and Have Yourself A Merry Little Christmas," he wrote.

In Rod's own biography, he detailed his early friendship with Elton. "I loved his sense of humour... we had football in common," Rod said.

"And I respected his opinions about music... if he liked something I had done, it meant a lot to me."

He described a night that stretched on to 6am due to 'medicinal powders,' and added, "four hours later, Elton woke me by thumping on the door. 'Come on, dear. We've got a football match to go to.'"

Their 'present feud' is well known, as Rod recalled the year he bought Elton a portable fridge, and Elton bought him a Rembrandt drawing. "I felt pretty small," Stewart admitted.

Elton later referred to the gift as 'the ice bucket.' He retaliated by sending Rod a £10 Boots gift voucher to mark his marriage to model Rachel Hunter.

Clearly, the two have a long history of falling out and (we hope) making up. But what happens when you can't say sorry in the media - and there's no chance whatsoever of sending a Rembrandt by way of apology?

Read more: Sir Elton John loves playing board games at home

Falling out with a friend is painful, and it's on the rise, seemingly, thanks to the twin disagreement peaks of Brexit and differing attitudes to the pandemic.

Psychotherapist and author of Create Your Own Calm (Harper Collins) Becky Goddard says, "When it comes to friendships and falling out it, it's the same for adults and for children." She suggests trying the following - but first be certain that you truly want to restore the friendship, and you're not just clinging to a relationship that no longer works.

1 Take some deep breaths and make sure you're calm and centred before trying to patch things up.

2 An apology for your part in the argument goes a long way but being honest is important. If you don’t know what you have done to upset them, do ask and do listen.

3 Do not rehash the fall out but do explore how you cans stop it happening again. ( e.g you might agree to not discuss politics in future). If the other persons is stuck on rehashing the argument let them know you have heard their point of view.

4 Let the other person know that you really value their friendship and want to look at how to move forward and make things better. If they agree organise a coffee/beer/ playdate soon so feelings don’t fester and you can remind yourselves how much you enjoy each other’s company.

5 If they are not ready to look at ways to move forward, say: "I’m going to give you some space to cool down and I'll check in with you next week about how we can make things better."

Go on, Rod and Elton - it's nearly Christmas. Time to say the hardest word and make up.

Watch: Penny Lancaster threw men's pants at Sir Rod Stewart