Linda was with The King from July 6, 1972 until Christmas 1976. They lived together at Graceland, which she helped redecorate, and went on tour together. When the star died eight months later, he left an indelible image of a broken and bloated recluse, a shadow of his former self. But the woman who knew him best in those final years describes a very different man, full of life and, most importantly, laughter. SCROLL DOWN TO WATCH THE FULL INTERVIEW

Linda said: “Elvis had raucous sense of humour and I always like to say that as much as Elvis loved to sing, he loved to laugh.

“If you’ve seen any of the footage, how he would curl his lip and break into laughter. There was not a more glorious sound, except for maybe his singing. There was not a more glorious or gratifying sound for me than to hear him exhibiting peals of laughter.

“He laughed from his toes up to his beautiful lips.” 

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Linda was speaking in a special video made for The Memphis Mafia Youtube channel, which is run by Sheri Lacker, the daughter of original Memphis Mafia member Marty Lacker.

Linda talked about the infamous relationship between Elvis and that close group of male friends and staff.

She said: “Those guys adored him, they built their lives around him and I felt honoured to be included in that elite group of men that considered themselves a brotherhood. I really felt like the guys, I went on every single tour, I went to Vegas every time he played there, so I really got to know all these guys really well.”

Linda added: “You couldn’t be around Elvis Presley and not love him. You couldn’t be around him and not recognise the magnanimous person he was. The huge presence that he was, the winsome personality that he had. 

“He was an incredible human being and I feel incredibly lucky to have got to know him so deeply and love him so greatly and it’s lasted to this day.”