Barry Humphries' memorial details revealed
Australia’s Prime Minister Anthony Albanese has confirmed that the late Barry Humphries will receive a joint state funeral between Victoria, New South Wales, and the wider Commonwealth.
The 89-year-old comedian passed away in April following complications from hip surgery, with tributes flowing in from around the world. At the time, Albanese wrote that Humphries had entertained audiences for generations with his “galaxy of personas, from Dame Edna to Sandy Stone”.
And during an interview with the UK’s Talk TV, Albanese revealed that plans were underway to host a state funeral for the star - though he could not provide further official detail on what that might entail.
"There will be a state funeral for Barry Humphries as well,” he explained, “co-hosted by the New South Wales and the Victorian government, and the Australian government, my government will be a part of that.
"He's someone who gave an enormous amount of pleasure to generations of Australians and I know that a range of people who are friends of mine knew him very well.
"I know how warmly he was regarded by people in Australia and the UK."
However, when Victorian Premier Daniel Andrews was asked about it all, he had to tell reporters that he “wasn’t aware there was a three-government thing.
"I can't confirm for you where the service will be, or where the funeral will be. As far as I know, that's not settled and we're still talking to the family.”
And while Albanese may not have had those talks with Andrews, he did take the time to further discuss Humphries with Talk TV’s controversial host Piers Morgan, prompted by a question surrounding ‘cancel culture’ and the late "quintessential Australian character".
“People can legitimately put forward their concerns about someone’s comments that were made then,” Albanese said, in reference to the criticism over Humphries’ hurtful comments about the transgender community, and the decision to rename the ‘Barry Award’ in 2019.
“But, at the same time, I think that we’ve got to be able to laugh at ourselves,” he continued. “The idea of ‘cancel culture’ is - in my view - a sad development … you see it happen so often and things [get] too taken out of context.”
And as he previously noted, "Barry Humphries could only have come from Australia. What Barry Humphries would say is [that Australians like] 'taking the piss out of ourselves'.
"He did it so well and for such a long period of time, so it was a big loss for the Australian arts community."
Images: Getty