Barry Chuckle passed away from bone cancer, it has been revealed.
The TV favourite, real name Barry Elliott (left in picture above), passed away over the weekend aged 73.
He was one half of comedy duo The Chuckle Brothers alongside brother Paul.
In a statement, Paul said: “I’ve not just lost my brother, I’ve lost my theatrical partner of many, many years and my very best friend.”
Manager Phil Dale added: “It is with great sadness that the family announce that Barry passed away peacefully at his home surrounded by his wife Ann and all his family.
“The family would like to express their thanks to the many people who have been fans of the Chuckle Brothers and they know that they will share in part the great, great loss they feel.”
According to The Sun, Barry kept his illness secret from everyone but his family.
Older brother Brian told the tabloid: “We’ve known for a while Barry was very ill. I drove up this week and saw him for two hours. We knew the end was very near.
“He was on morphine but we chatted. I gave him a kiss goodbye at the end. There were tears, of course.
“Up until this last year he’d been fine. But he’s been a smoker all his life. It’s been very rough. Especially keeping it from people.”
Fourth brother Jimmy added: “We are all devastated. Barry had bone cancer which had spread to his lungs. He was ill for years, but kept it hidden.
“We knew about it, but kept it quiet, and all the family are really hurting right now.”
Last night saw Channel 5 air the latest episode of The Chuckle Brothers’ new TV series Chuckle Time.
It was their first new TV show in almost a decade, since ChuckleVision ended after over 20 years on air back in 2009.
Channel 5 said: “Channel 5 is saddened to hear of the passing of Barry Chuckle. As one half of the Chuckle Brothers, Barry entertained audiences over a career spanning decades; more recently, Chuckle Time was a teatime family treat on our channel. Our thoughts are with his family and friends.”
The Chuckle Brothers first began their careers on 1960s talent show Opportunity Knocks and later New Faces in 1974.
