Following the death of Paul O’Grady in March, a close friend of the star opened up about the last time he ever saw the showbiz legend.
Paul died on Tuesday March 28 aged just 67 – with his husband Andre confirming the news in a heartbreaking statement. Paul’s unexpected death led to an influx of tributes from fans and friends.
Best friend Amanda Mealing opened up about Paul’s funeral wishes, while good friend and fellow radio producer, Malcom Prince, recalled the last time he ever saw his friend.
Paul O’Grady death: Friend recalls final goodbye to star
Malcom worked as a producer on Paul’s BBC Radio 2 show. The pair made a whopping 546 episodes together. In an interview back in the spring, Malcom paid tribute to his dear friend, and revealed he was with him just hours before his death.
It was the perfect afternoon.
Writing in the Radio Times, Malcom said he was with Paul at his home having a cup of tea on the day that he died. Malcom revealed: “We were meant to be making plans for our new show, due to launch on Boom Radio, but really we were laughing, reminiscing, plotting, doing what we always did.”
He then went on: “It was the perfect afternoon. When I left, he gave me a hug and said: ‘I’ll talk to you tomorrow.’ I said: ‘Go inside, I don’t want you watching me try to reverse the car down the drive.’ We’d had two hours of fun, and two hours later he was gone.”
In tribute to Paul O’Grady, we’re taking up your suggestion of repeating his final ever programme – from Christmas Day – opened by a few fitting words from Malcolm. Enjoy Paul’s wonderful voice once more on Easter Sunday at 2.00. pic.twitter.com/m41vVrVMik
— BoomRadioUK (@BoomRadioUK) March 31, 2023
Paul O’Grady mural ‘defaced days after being created’
Malcolm’s comments came after a mural in Manchester commemorating Paul was defaced only days after being created. The “amazing” black-and-white mural was displayed in South Manchester. It showed a portrait of the For the Love of Dogs star next to one of his much-loved canine companions. The artwork was lovingly captioned: “For Paul.”
It was created by artist Manchester Murals. They described it as a celebration of the “well-grounded entertainment machine that spanned generations”. The mural received much appreciation from local residents and fans further afield who flocked to see it.
However, visitors to the mural were shocked to arrive to a defaced artwork. In images obtained by Manchester Evening News, the beautiful portrait of Paul appears to have been sprayed with graffiti. Artist Chris Moore, who himself spent several days working on the mural, said he was “disappointed” at the discovery.
A repeat of Paul O’Grady’s Little Heroes airs tonight (July 18) on ITV1 at 8pm.
Read more: Paul O’Grady planned his own funeral in extraordinary detail – from glass coffin to star performers
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