Lily Savage and Blind Date star but peacefully’ on Tuesday evening, according to his partner Andre Portasio.
The much-loved figure, 67, hosted The Paul O’Grady Show, Blind Date and Blankety Blank, as well as ’s multi-award-winning For The Love Of Dogs.
He also hosted ITV celebrity game show, Paul O’Grady’s Saturday Night Line Up.
O’Grady took over the reins from Blind Date’s long-running presenter and his close friend Cilla Black – who died in 2015 – as he hosted the reboot of the show in 2017.
he was due to host a special Easter Sunday show on Boom Radio following his departure from BBC Radio 2 last August.
Over the course of , the star graced the showbiz world with some cracking one-liners and left us all with plenty of words of wisdom.
‘Times are hard and friends are few’.
‘At the moment it is the current trend. We’ll have a drag queen reading the news before much longer’.
‘The worst drivers are women in people carriers, men in white vans and anyone in a baseball cap. That’s just about everyone‘.
‘If I wanted your opinion, I’d slap it outta ya‘.
‘Noel Coward said work is more fun than fun, but then he didn’t work in the Bird’s Eye factory packing frozen fish fingers nine hours a day, did he?’
‘I’m travelling light this time but when I used to go on the road, I’d take my Baby Belling oven and my electric frying pan‘.
‘I like a Blackpool breakfast, me – 20 ciggies and a pot of tea’.
‘I dress up as a middle-aged prostitute and do a game show‘.
‘I was a familiar sight at Victoria, dressed as Miss Hannigan with 12 orphans behind me, staggering across the street!‘
‘I live on a farm in Kent and I ended up talking to my pigs! I learnt two songs on the ukulele, I made loads of chutney and jam and I wrote a kids’ book‘.
‘I’d rather do community service than sit and write a load of Christmas cards‘.
‘I don’t live with people, that’s why my relationships last. I’m not romantic. Even when I was a teenager if somebody asked if they could hold my hand I’d say, – no, it’s not heavy, I can hold it myself, thank you‘.
‘Comedy, your funny bone, is formed in childhood‘.
‘I enjoyed school – although I ran away on the first day. I’d reminded the teacher that it was nearly time for Watch With Mother on TV‘.
‘I love looking after animals. I find it very enjoyable‘.
‘It’s become normal for me to walk on set as Popeye, Frankenstein or an Elf or even a chicken‘.
‘I think 65 is a state of mind – until I look in the mirror and realise that the state of mind has been lying to me all day!‘
‘I’ve got six pigs, three goats, six barn owls, three chickens, four dogs and six sheep‘.
‘I am not bothered about sex, money or fame, I just want a mongoose’.
