Popular Comedian Is Dead (See Photo)

….The Australian comedian Barry Humphries, best known for his drag character Dame Edna Everage, has died aged 89.

,,,,,,​”​He was completely himself until the very end, never losing his brilliant mind, his unique wit and generosity of spirit,” his family said in a statement.

Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese paid tribute in a tweet, calling him “a great wit, satirist, writer and an absolute one-of-kind.”

The entertainer had been readmitted to hospital on Wednesday for complications following hip surgery last month, the Sydney Morning Herald reported. Humphries had a hip replacement following a fall in February.

Humphries

,,,,,,Born in Melbourne, Australia in 1934, Humphries created the character of housewife Edna Everage in 1955 as a social satire. The character became a huge hit in the 1970s when Humphries brought the act to London’s West End and appeared in a host of productions, TV shows, and chat shows.

Before Edna made it big, Humphries appeared in numerous West End productions including “Oliver” and “Maggie Way” in the 1960s.

,,,,Known for her lilac-colored hair, diamante-encrusted cat glasses and catch phrases such as “Hello Possums!”, Edna quickly became a national treasure.

Throughout the 1970s, 80s and 90s, Humphries landed a series of TV talk shows, specials and films, as Dame Edna and his other alter-egos Les Patterson and Sandy Stone, among them The Dame Edna Experience in 1987.

,,,,,Humphries is survived by his wife, Lizzie Spender and four children.