Comedy legend Sir Norman Wisdom passed away while still cracking jokes, his family disclosed yesterday.
At the age of 95, he even arranged for a humorous epitaph to adorn his tombstone: “Eee, he was old.”
Daughter-in-law Kim Wisdom recounted how the veteran of film and television continued with his wisecracks despite battling strokes and dementia.
A day after his death cast Albania, where he had a cult following, into national mourning, Kim confirmed that the family intends to fulfill his wishes regarding his gravestone.
She shared, “He told me, ‘You know, I haven’t got long left.’ I replied, ‘Nonsense, Norman, you’ll be receiving your letter from the Queen when you turn 100.’
“He responded, ‘Well then, I want you to write on my gravestone, ‘Eee, he was old,’ and burst into laughter.
That’s exactly what we’ll do. He wanted everyone to smile when they visit his grave.”
Kim, 55, also mentioned how Sir Norman’s son Nick and daughter Jackie felt “devastated” for missing his final moments in an Isle of Man nursing home.
Both were hurrying there after learning about his decline, but he passed away peacefully in his sleep before they could reach him.
Wartime singer Dame Vera Lynn, a close friend of Sir Norman, expressed that his death marked “a very sad day” for British comedy.
She remarked: “Such notable comics are few and far between these days.”
Comedian Roy Chubby Brown, another friend, remarked melancholically: “He was a comic genius.” Sir Norman, renowned for his slapstick humor, became a symbol in Albania by portraying the clumsy Norman Pitkin in a series of films beginning in the 1950s. These were the only foreign movies permitted for screening by the communists.
His hit ‘Big In Albania,’ released in 2002, was played continuously on the radio.
Albanian Prime Minister Sali Berisha, 65, praised him as “one of the dearest friends of our nation.”
He stated, “On behalf of the Albanian government, I would like to extend heartfelt condolences to the grieving family, his friends, and the government of Her Majesty.”
Albanian ambassador Zef Mazi added: “Sir Norman was more significant than David Beckham.”
