Dawn French has paid tribute to fellow comedian Jethro, who has died at the age of 73 after contracting COVID-19.
Dawn French leads tributes to Jethro
The comedian shot to fame after appearing on 'The Des O'Connor Show' in 1990 and spent the years that followed touring theatres with his stand up and 'Vicar of Dibley' star Dawn took to Twitter to pay her respects.
She tweeted: "This gloriously un-pc Cornishman, Jethro, (Geoffrey Rowe) has left us. Some of my most helpless with laughter moments were in his presence. A supremely gifted comedian. Thoughts with all he loved. Geddon bey.
Her words came soon after his family announced his death on his official Facebook page.
It read: "It is with tremendous sadness that we announce the passing of the well known and popular Cornish comedian Jethro. Tragically Jethro passed away on 14th December 2021 after contracting COVID-19."
Jethro - whose real name was Geoffrey Rowe - retired from touring in 2020 and is survived by his partner Jennie, their two children and grandchildren
The family continued: "Jethro leaves behind his life partner Jennie, sons Jesse and Lanyon, step daughter Sarah, daughter-in-law Stacey and of course his much loved grandchildren. We ask that you respect our privacy at this very sad time and give us all time to grieve. We will continue to support each other in the knowledge that our lives will never be the same without him."
Other celebrity tributes poured in upon the news of his death, fellow stand-up star Jim Davidson also keen to pay his respects to a "good friend."
He tweeted: "My good friend Jethro has left us. RIP Jethro, you will be greatly missed."
Former heavyweight champion Frank Bruno also wrote on Twitter about how he had "spent a bit of time with him a couple of weeks ago in Plymouth", adding that he was a "very funny man, had his own unique style of comedy [and was] great fun to be with".
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