Sir Elton John, the “Rocket Man” of Vicarage Road for 32 years, has fallen to earth. Not so much with a crash and explosion, but a mild bump and a whimper as he resigned as life president of Watford, the struggling Coca-Cola Championship club.

John, 61, the former Watford chairman and director, is renowned for his volatile mood swings as well as his records. Tantrums and Tiaras, a frank television documentary made by David Furnish, his partner, and aired in 1996, showed the rock musician at his temperamental worst.

Unseen footage could be released by Furnish in a follow-up programme, but it is unlikely that John’s departure from Watford can be dismissed as merely a tantrum. He has grown disillusioned with the running of the club — or at least his perception of its running — by Graham Simpson, the chairman, and issued a terse statement to that effect last month. In it, John said: “As a lifelong fan and former chairman, I feel I must express my deep dismay about what is happening at the club. There is a danger of it plummeting into freefall — I fear we could be facing that catastrophe.”

John’s dismay deepened as Watford’s plight near the foot of the Championship worsened after a run of only two wins in 11 league matches. That sequence culminated in the departure of Adrian Boothroyd, the manager and a close friend of John, by mutual consent on Monday, and the issuing of a statement on the singer’s personal website.

“Elton affirmed that he would always be a fan of Watford,” it said. “He wishes the team every success for the future. However, in the light of developments over the past few months, he feels he cannot remain in any formal position within the club.”

John’s differences with Simpson hinge on the finances at Watford, which the superstar — born Reginald Kenneth Dwight in Pinner, Middlesex — claims have not been managed properly. However, it is understood that Watford, in line with many Championship clubs, have only small outstanding loans and a “manageable” overdraft.

Having supported the club since the age of 7, John fulfilled his lifelong dream in 1976 when he became chairman for the first time. Though then in the old fourth division, Watford rose to the top flight under the management of Graham Taylor, finishing runners-up to Liverpool in 1983, and reached the FA Cup Final in 1984, when they lost 2-0 to Everton at Wembley Stadium. A tearful John sat in the Royal Box.

Less auspiciously, during John’s second stint as chairman, he presided over the ill-fated reign of Gianluca Vialli as manager. That, too, ended in tears, with Vialli dimissed — shortly after John had stepped down — 12 months into a three-year contract. Watford had finished in fourteenth place in the first division, player wages had soared and, the next season, they only narrowly avoided going into administration.

Malky Mackay, the caretaker manager, attempted to steady the rocking ship yesterday when he reappointed Keith Burkinshaw to the coaching staff on an interim basis. Burkinshaw, Boothroyd’s former assistant, had left in January for family reasons.

John is performing in the United States, where he is in the middle of a three-week run in Las Vegas on his latest world tour. Should he reconsider his decision to sever his ties with Watford, it is likely to be looked on favourably.

“He is, after all, a fan,” a source said. “If not it really could be the end of the ‘Yellow Brick Road’.”