Paul O'Grady

British TV presenter and comedian Paul O'Grady, best known for his drag queen persona Lily Savage, has died...

He took on chat show The Lily Savage Show for the BBC for a short run in 1997 and later that year had success as the host of a revived version of game show Blankety Blank, which ran until 2002. O'Grady's career as Savage took off with TV and radio appearances in character and he was eventually asked to take over from Paula Yates as The Big Breakfast presenter as Savage from 1995 to 1996. During his career, he hosted The Paul O'Grady Show, Blind Date and Blankety Blank, as well as ITV's multi-award-winning For The Love Of Dogs.

The celebrated media personality's shock death was confirmed by his partner Andre Portasio.

The Paul O’Grady show was the best and even went to see it live many times,” one tweet said. I feel a Lily Savage marathon coming on tonight,” a fan wrote. Such a great show person. [Camilla, Queen Consort](https://7news.com.au/entertainment/royal-family) for an episode of For The Love Of Dogs which aired across the UK to mark 160 years of the Battersea Dogs & Cats Home. O’Grady also presented For the Love of Dogs – being a well-known animal lover, advocate and supporter of Battersea Dogs and Cats Home in London. “I know that he would want me to thank you for all the love you have shown him over the years.”

Paul O'Grady died “unexpectedly but peacefully” on Tuesday evening UK time according to his partner, Andre Portasio.

British TV presenter and comedian Paul O’Grady has passed away aged 67. “I know that he would want me to thank you for all the love you have shown him over the years.” “It is with great sadness that I inform you that Paul has passed away unexpectedly but peacefully yesterday evening,” Portasio said in a statement.

British entertainer best known for drag queen alter-ego Lily Savage and For the Love of Dogs, has died.

British entertainer Paul O’Grady, best known for drag queen alter-ego Lily Savage and For the Love of Dogs, has died aged 67. British entertainer best known for drag queen alter-ego Lily Savage and For the Love of Dogs, has died. Later in his career, he went on to host Blind Date, a number of chat shows, travel shows and more recently Paul O’Grady: For the Love of Dogs, a series he helped launched in 2012 following the staff at Battersea Dogs Home and the pets they care for.

His career spanned more than three decades - from drag acts in London, to an MBE and beyond.

Before his death aged 67, presenter, comedian and drag queen Paul O'Grady had a vibrant and varied career in the entertainment industry spanning more than ...

All pictures subject to copyright. Paul O'Grady: A life in pictures [his death aged 67](https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/entertainment-arts-65108130), presenter, comedian and drag queen Paul O'Grady had a vibrant and varied career in the entertainment industry spanning more than three decades.

Partner announces "unexpected but peaceful" death of presenter and comedian best known for his drag queen persona Lily Savage.

What sad news, sending sympathy to the whole cast and crew," another said. A talented presenter, actor and broadcaster with an unrivalled love for animals," one Instagram user wrote. "So sad.

The TV presenter and comedian died "unexpectedly but peacefully" on Tuesday evening, his partner says.

The role is responsible for representing the King at events in the area. He had previously had heart attacks in 2002 and 2006, the latter requiring a stay in intensive care. The TV star had a daughter with his friend Diane Jansen in 1974. It was later revived in 2013 on ITV and remained on air for two years. He began performing as Lily Savage in the 1970s. We have lost a unique talent - and I've lost a dear friend."

Host of Blind Date and Blankety Blank described as someone who stuck up for the underdog – particularly if they were canine.

The charity’s chief executive, Peter Laurie, said: “Battersea will forever remember Paul as a devoted animal lover with the biggest heart, who fell head over heels in love with every dog he met at our centres.” O’Grady’s affection for animals was so great, he once said that given the choice of more sex or money, he would choose a mongoose. He retired Savage to “a convent in Brittany” in 2004. I know that he would want me to thank you for all the love you have shown him over the years.” [Carol Vorderman](https://www.theguardian.com/culture/vorderman) told the BBC that O’Grady was a “massive talent” who “made every part of you feel like you were alive”. He was discovered at a club in south London when he stood in for an act that called in sick, playing the drag persona Lily Savage, a loud-mouthed single mother and occasional sex worker.

Paul O'Grady, one of Britain's most popular TV personalities, has died aged 67.

[official Twitter account](https://twitter.com/RoyalFamily/status/1640997462176419840?ref_src=twsrc%5Egoogle%7Ctwcamp%5Eserp%7Ctwgr%5Etweet), writing: “Deeply saddened to hear of the death of Paul O’Grady, who worked closely with Her Majesty in support of O’Grady also hosted ITV’s “For The Love Of Dogs.” In a one-off special for the show last year, O’Grady was joined by Camilla, Queen Consort to mark 160 years of Battersea Dogs and Cats Home, an organization for which he was an ambassador. An awesome talent stretching decades.” O’Grady won numerous accolades during his career, including a TV BAFTA, and in 2008 he was made a Member of the Order of the British Empire (MBE) for services to entertainment. In 1997, “The Lily Savage Show” ran briefly on the BBC before, later that year O’Grady took on the role of presenting the revived version of BBC gameshow “Blankety Blank,” which ran until 2002. [Doctor Who](https://cnn.com/2022/05/08/entertainment/doctor-who-ncuti-gatwa-intl-scli/index.html)” star John Barrowman [tweeted](https://twitter.com/JohnBarrowman/status/1640948230761631745): “I am totally shocked and sad to hear the awful news that Paul O’Grady has died.

Entertainer Paul O'Grady, who achieved fame as drag queen Lily Savage before becoming a much-loved comedian and host on British television, has died.

“Paul was one of the loveliest people you could ever meet,” Tatchell said. Camilla, the queen consort, was a guest on the show last year. O’Grady used his platform to speak out about LGBT rights at the height of the AIDS crisis, a time when the Conservative government of Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher was passing anti-gay laws.

LONDON — (AP) — Entertainer Paul O'Grady, who achieved fame as drag queen Lily Savage before becoming a much-loved comedian and host on British television, ...

“Paul was one of the loveliest people you could ever meet,” Tatchell said. Camilla, the queen consort, was a guest on the show last year. O’Grady used his platform to speak out about LGBT rights at the height of the AIDS crisis, a time when the Conservative government of Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher was passing anti-gay laws.

TV presenter, actor and comedian Paul O'Grady has died at the age of 67, his husband has announced in a statement.

So sad to wake to the news that Paul O’Grady has died. He was a true comedy great and his twinkly,mischievous presence will be missed by so many. Devastated 💔 I introduced Lily onto the 2 Brewers stage at 18/19 years old. Paul O’Grady was responsible for the best nights out & the worst hangovers. Both Scott and I are really sad about the news and our thoughts are with his husband André and family. From watching him as Lily Savage at the Vauxhall Tavern to sitting with him laughing backstage at West End Bares to being a guest on his @itv Paul O’Grady show numerous times. ITV chat show host Lorraine Kelly wrote on Twitter that he was a “really special man”. Last year O’Grady left his BBC Radio 2 show, confirming that it was because he was unhappy about sharing his Sunday afternoon slot. Actor John Barrowman added: “I am totally shocked and sad to hear the awful news that Paul O’Grady has died. In 2013 the chat show was hosted by guests after O’Grady had a health scare. The chat show was later revived in 2013 on ITV and remained on air for two years. [March 29, 2023]

Comedian, broadcaster and chat-show host who shot to widespread fame in the 1990s as his alter ego Lily Savage.

Last year he made a special one-off episode of For the Love of Dogs to mark 160 years of Battersea Dogs and Cats Home, for which he was an ambassador. In 2011 he quit Paul O’Grady Live after becoming exasperated with his role as a chat- show host: “I felt part of the PR machine. But O’Grady killed off Savage in 2005, claiming Lily had “seen the light, taken the veil and packed herself off to a convent in France”. A two-part eulogy to the British working class, broadcast in 2013, it prompted press scepticism – not least because O’Grady told viewers he still considered himself working class despite being a millionaire who owned a generous plot of land in Kent. Tatchell said of O’Grady: “Paul wasn’t just a brilliant comedian and broadcast personality but a much admired campaigner for LGBT+ equality and animal rights … “I was born late – what my mother calls the last kick of a dying horse,” he said in his 2009 autobiography At My Mother’s Knee … “They made many arrests but we were a stoic lot and it was business as usual the next night.” In the 70s he worked for Camden council in north London as a peripatetic carer. “So we went out every night and were the talk of the island.” The story was typical of O’Grady, who loved to dramatise his indomitability and had an unquenchable desire to be in the public eye. His defiant unshakeability and desire to perform came together in his first stage persona, the foul-mouthed Lily Savage, who sported a platinum blond beehive wig, vast quantities of makeup, white stilettos, a leopardskin miniskirt and a matching fake-fur coat. “My nose was out to here and I had a black eye, but I said: ‘I’m not ruining my holiday,’” he recalled. She even returned in triumph to her native Merseyside, and became a regular on This Morning with Richard and Judy.

A boundary-busting standup, a radio sensation, a knockout on TV, a champion for LGBTQ rights, and a pet-lover extraordinaire … stars and writers pay tribute ...

He was backstage at the Tavern in 1987, preparing for his performance and adjusting his wig, when suddenly the police burst into his dressing room. O’Grady developed the act (“a creature,” he said, “that was more cartoon than human”) in the gay clubs of London’s Camden Town – specifically, the Black Cap. Recently, when we were working on a campaign to get an apology from the police for their past persecution of the LGBTQ+ community, he told me a story that stuck in my mind. So, in his final months, he was preparing to stand up, accuse them of homophobia and demand they finally take responsibility and apologise. And what he landed on often, was fury – at the “criminals” in government. The fact that a lot of people who wrote in seemed to be of advanced years – the requests were often to thank helpful younger family members or carers – said a great deal about the breadth of his appeal. He wrinkled his nose and said: “I’m just the burnt-out wreck of a once glorious disco.” He worried about them when they were poorly and shared the joy when we found them loving homes. I got the feeling that, with his programmes about animals, he had to really push to make them happen. These tales echoed back to the war, with secrets and debts and back-alley shags in the Liverpool of the Blitz. He could just talk about whatever was in his head and get laughs. He stared at me like the scan of a 3D printer.