Paul O'Grady died sharing a joint with his husband.
The 67-year-old presenter passed away at home in March and Andre Portasio - who he married in 2017 - has told of the "very ordinary day" they had spent together in the 'For the Love of Dogs' star's final hours, which included watching TV and enjoying a cannabis-filled cigarette.
According to The Sun newspaper, Andre told 320 guests including Gaby Roslin, Dawn French, Alan Carr and Amanda Holden at a memorial service at London's Bloomsbury Ballroom on Wednesday (18.10.23): “We’d had a very ordinary day, just watching TV together at home, when Paul said he wanted to make a ‘cup of tea,’ and that was our little code for rolling a spliff.
“So Paul went to the kitchen to make a cup of tea, brought it back, lit it and started smoking it – and that was our last time together, the last thing we did. He passed away there in his chair.”
Andre also joked about Paul's hatred of the cheap hotels when he had to travel for work.
A source said: “It was a very moving speech, with some lovely memories and stories – and everyone laughed a lot – but it was also surprisingly candid. It was just Andre’s way of dealing with grief and getting things off his chest.”
Paul's friend Julian Clary also shared his favourite memories of his late pal.
He told the guests: “I went over to Paul’s for dinner, and he served me pumpkin soup. After that, the evening got a bit a wild - and I can’t remember very much.
“The next day, Paul called me and said, ‘How did you find the soup?’ and laughed hysterically.
“God knows what he’d put in it!”
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