People across the country have come together to pay tribute to Paul O’Grady, who has died aged 67. During Wednesday’s, March 29 edition of ITV’s Good Morning Britain, the TV star and comedian’s life was looked back on by hosts Suzanna Reid and Martin Lewis.
Suzanna and Martin were joined in the studio by human rights activist Peter Tatchell, whose foundation Paul was a patron for. During the interview, Peter revealed a particular sassy Lily Savage moment from 1987 that has stuck in his memory.
“When he went on stage [at the Royal Vauxhall Tavern], he saw the police wearing rubber gloves,” Peter began. “This was the height of the AIDS pandemic and ignorant and bigoted police believed that if you touched a gay man then you would get HIV.”
Read more: Paul O'Grady's heartbreaking last post on social media
Peter continued: “Paul then shouted out to the coppers, ‘Oh good you're here! You can help with the washing up’.” Paul, dressed as Lily Savage, would then be arrested during the raid at the LGBT+ club.
Susanna then asked: “And he was going to lead a campaign wasn’t he? To demand an apology for that harassment and discrimination?” Peter then replied: “That’s right. He never got an apology himself but he was working with me on a campaign.”
Paul’s death shocked fans in the early morning of Wednesday, March 29. The news was confirmed by his partner Andre Portasio in a statement that declared he’d died “unexpectedly but peacefully” on Tuesday evening.
Following the news, fans immediately took to social media to share their sadness. After GMB shared a clip of their tribute to Paul, one person shared: “Originally wasn't a fan of Lilly / O'Grady. When he moved his chat show to C4 I tuned in and really got into him. He had a great gift of the gab, he had Olga his mascot with him and played the organ game.”
A second wrote: “OMG I’m truly devastated, I never knew him but he always made you feel like he was your best friend.” And a third added: “He seemed genuinely likeable & I’m glad he blew up when he did - in todays world, his Lily Savage character would be blasted as the devil and one of the nicest guys to ever grace showbiz would be labeled as evil.”
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