'Incredible' comedian Janey Godley dies at the age of 63

The Scottish comedian Janey Godley has died aged 63. Her death comes one month after she moved to a hospice for end-oflife care, with her daughter announcing earlier this week that she was in the "final beats of her life".

- GREG EVANS

"It is with great sadness that we announce the death of our client Doctor Janey Godley on 2nd November," her agent said yesterday. “Janey died peacefully in the wonderful Prince and Princess of Wales Hospice in Glasgow, surrounded by her loved ones. She will be hugely missed by her family, friends and her many fans.

“She will be remembered for her legendary voiceovers of Nicola Sturgeon during the pandemic, her hilarious and outspoken comedy, but most of all for just being ‘Janey’.”

In September this year, as she was due to begin her UK tour titled Why Is She Still Here?, Godley was advised by doctors to stop working “for the foreseeable future” because her cancer was spreading. On 25 September, Godley shared a video on social media confirming that she was receiving palliative care and would be going into a hospice.

She also thanked the NHS and those who had cared for her, as well as her family, friends and fans for their support.

“So I’m now in palliative care and I’m at end-of-life care now in the hospital,” she said in the video. “The chemo ran out of options and I just couldn’t take any more of it, and the cancer has spread. So it looks like this will be getting to near the end of it, and it’s really difficult to speak about this and say to people.”

She was given the all clear in 2022, but announced the following year that the disease had been found in her abdomen. Despite this news, she continued with her tour in February and March 2023.

Godley told ITV’s Lorraine that fellow comedian Jimmy Carr had played a key role in convincing her to continue her tour despite her condition. She said: “I decided to cancel the tour, and my mate Jimmy Carr said, ‘Is your mouth not working?’ I went, ‘Yeah, my mouth works,’ and he said, ‘Well, get back on tour.’”