Paul O’Grady confessed to pals that ‘he wasn’t going to be here for much longer’ weeks before he suddenly died, as his close friend revealed some of the star’s final vulnerable moments.
The TV presenter, whose alter ego was Lily Savage, passed away aged 67 at his home in Kent in March 2023 after suffering from a cardiac arrhythmia.
The star’s close friend and producer, Malcolm Prince, has written a book about Paul, Not The Same Without You, serialised by the Daily and Sunday Mirror.
In the publication, Malcolm revealed a devastating testimony from Paul’s close friends and family, including Moira Stewart, who picked him up after a hospital visit.
‘As we were driving along the lanes back home, he said to me, “I’m not going to be here for much longer”. I asked him what he meant and pushed him to tell me what the doctors had said to him’, Malcom revealed to the publication.
‘He was contemplative. I put my arm around him, and he just replied, “That’s it. I think I won’t be here for much longer”.
Paul O’Grady confessed to pals that ‘he wasn’t going to be here for much longer’ weeks before he suddenly died, as his close friend revealed some of the star’s final vulnerable moments
The TV presenter, whose alter ego was Lily Savage, passed away aged 67 at his home in Kent in March 2023 after suffering from a cardiac arrhythmia
He also reflected on some of the most vulnerable times the star experienced with Malcom as he revealed the moment Paul told him he was coming to terms that he did not have much time left during a phone conversation weeks later.
‘It’s a conversation I will never forget because he calmly ended our chat with, “I won’t make old bones, Malcolm”.
Even weeks before his death, during a conversation about the death of someone close to Malcolm, Paul said about ‘not knowing what was around the corner.’
Malcom also recently revealed that in the final few months of his life, he refused an implantable defibrillator due to his work commitments.
The star had signed up to do the musical Annie as well as a dog show and didn’t want to take time out.
Malcom also revealed: ‘He didn’t want to go back into the hospital to have another procedure and then spend time recuperating.
‘He wanted to get on and live his life, but also work. He didn’t want to let people down.’
A few months prior to his death, Paul spent a week in William Harvey Hospital in Ashford, Kent and didn’t want to return to the hospital and texted his daughter Sharyn to tell her he wouldn’t be getting the defib.
The star’s close friend and producer, Malcolm Prince, has written a book about Paul, Not The Same Without You, serialised by the Daily and Sunday Mirror (pictured together)
In the publication, Malcolm revealed a devastating testimony from Paul’s close friends and family, including Moira Stewart, who picked him up after a hospital visit
Meanwhile, his manager and close Joan Marshrons, explained: ‘He was scared of losing control and I think that’s why he wouldn’t have the pacemaker because he didn’t want to be on camera or in front of an audience when the thing kicked in … he would have been embarrassed about it all.’
Malcolm’s book features candid testimony from his family, including his daughter Sharyn, his friends, colleagues and celebrity pals.
The book also mentions how Paul may have had an eating disorder, which could have stemmed from the pressure to remain slim as his alter-ego Lily Savage.
His make-up artist, Vanessa White, recalled how he wouldn’t be able to eat while he was filming as Lily.
