FAREWELL to an ICON

THE WORLD PAYS TRIBUTE TO ONE OF AUSTRALIA'S MOST BELOVED ENTERTAINERS

- Sara Tapia

In true Barry Humphries style, the Australian comedian kept friends and fans laughing right until the very end. “Barry would like to thank everybody for the support and good wishes he has received but would like more and more,” his family said, after the 89-year-old was readmitted to hospital recently following a fall in February.

Just days later, the entertainment legend passed away as the result of ongoing complications from hip surgery on April 22, with his family by his bedside. “He was completely himself until the very end, never losing his brilliant mind, his unique wit and generosity of spirit,” they said in a statement.

While Humphries was best known for his scene-stealing character Dame Edna Everage, his wife, Elizabeth Spender, and their family also highlighted the many other hats he wore. “Although he may be best remembered for his work in theatre, he was a painter, author, poet, and a collector and lover of art in all its forms,” they added. “He was also a loving and devoted husband, father, grandfather, and a friend and confidant to many.”

Born in 1934 in suburban Melbourne, Humphries had a happy, yet somewhat uneventful, childhood. His father, Eric, was a construction manager and spent little time with him, while Humphries previously revealed his mother, Louisa, battled mental health problems. It’s because of this that a young Humphries found himself spending hours playing dress-ups in the backyard. “Disguising myself as different characters and I had a whole box of dressing-up clothes … Red Indian, sailor suit, Chinese costume and I was very spoiled in that way,” he once said of his childhood.