The colourful life of comedy legend Barry Humphries, who brought to life Dame Edna Everage and Sir Les Patterson, will be honoured in a state memorial.

December 15, 2023

The life of acclaimed Australian entertainer Barry Humphries will be celebrated in a state memorial at the Sydney Opera House.

The comedy legend, best known for his alter egos Dame Edna Everage and Sir Les Patterson, died in Sydney on April 22, at the age of 89.

Humphries’ extraordinary international career, spanning seven decades, will be remembered on Friday by dignitaries, family, friends and fans.

The televised service will feature tributes and performances from the renowned actor, poet, musician and the artist’s family and friends, as well as stars from across the entertainment and arts worlds.

His death, following complications from surgery, sparked an outpouring of tributes for the treasured national icon at home and abroad.

Rupert Murdoch, former British prime minister Boris Johnson, comedian Ricky Gervais, Sir Michael Parkinson and Monty Python member Eric Idle were among those who joined Prime Minister Anthony Albanese in paying tribute to the satirist, who was also a loving and devoted husband, father, grandfather, and a friend and confidant to many.

Humphries, who lived in London for decades, returned to Sydney in December last year, where he suffered a fall requiring a hip replacement.

He died in St Vincent’s Hospital as a result of complications following the operation.

Humphries delighted and outraged audiences for more than half a century with his cavalcade of grotesques, presented in a unique blend of old-style music hall and contemporary satire.

Among them were the gross Sir Les Patterson, Australia’s “cultural attache to the Court of St James”, the melancholy and rambling Sandy Stone and, in comic strip and film, the chundering “Ocker in Pommyland”, Barry McKenzie.

Bazza was a boozy parody of the ugly Australian abroad, full of phrases like the “technicolour yawn”, “siphon the python” and “the one-eyed trouser snake”.

Dame Edna picked out “possums” from her audience and made them squirm, her appearances ending with a blizzard of “gladdies”

She was a huge critical and popular success.

Humphries continued touring up until the last year of his life and was “an entertainer to his core” who brought laughter to millions.

John Barry Humphries was born on February 17, 1934.

The two-hour memorial event is being co-hosted by the Australian and NSW governments and begins at 11am.