Paul O’Grady said he was ‘in heaven’ while making elephant documentary months before his death which will mark his final TV appearance
Paul O’Grady admitted he was ‘in heaven’ while filming his latest TV documentary just months before his shocking death at the age of 67 last year.
It was announced that Paul had died ‘unexpectedly but peacefully’ on March 28 from sudden cardiac arrhythmia at home with his partner Andre Portasio.
His last TV project was Paul O’Grady’s Great Elephant Adventure, which he completed work on just days before he died.
The documentary was filmed in Thailand and Laos in December 2022, with Paul’s voiceover work completed in the weeks leading up to his death.
The two-part series, which will be shown on ITV at Easter, will follow Paul as he helps out at centers by caring for endangered species.
Paul O’Grady admitted he was ‘in heaven’ while filming his latest TV documentary, just months before his shocking death at the age of 67 last year
According to the show’s producer and Paul’s long-time friend, Claire Barton, while at one of the centres, despite being covered in mud and almost falling over, Paul declared that he was ‘in heaven’.
A teaser clip for the series shows Paul getting punched by an elephant named Lotus as he turned around to apologize to her for not paying her enough attention.
Paul laughs and jokes: ‘I don’t stand a chance, do I!’
The show’s producer and Paul’s old friend. Claire Barton said: ‘Paul wanted to raise awareness of the plight of elephants, which fascinated him all his life.
‘We didn’t know this would be the last TV series Paul would film before his death last year.’
The series will focus on the efforts of workers at the conversation centers to rescue and rehabilitate wild elephants.
Although filming was completed in late 2022, it was only edited and completed in the days before Paul’s sudden death.
In February 2023, Claire revealed how she met Paul for meetings before he recorded voiceovers for the show.
His last TV project was Paul O’Grady’s Great Elephant Adventure, which he completed work on just days before he died.
A teaser clip for the series shows Paul getting punched by an elephant named Lotus as he turned around to apologize to her for not paying her enough attention.
The show’s producer and Paul’s old friend. Claire Barton said: ‘Paul wanted to raise awareness of the plight of elephants, which fascinated him all his life’
She admitted that if they had worked with Paul the job might never have been done, but she wrote in the letter Radio times he wanted to move on.
She wrote: ‘But Paul flew through the commentary. For the first time in 18 years of working together, Paul suggested we go ahead and record the voice-over. That afternoon we finished the films with Paul’s voice. The date was March 15, 2023. It would be the last time I ever saw Paul.”
Claire also heartbreakingly revealed that she had Paul had great plans for more TV shows together, which will now never be made.
The duo had been working together on various shows for twenty years and were already in the early process of kicking around new ideas.
According to Claire, these ideas included a series about the African elephant and a series about wild dogs and wolves in Canada, which would be filmed the same year.
The series is a nod to Paul’s lifelong love of animals, having spent much of his later life filming his show For The Love Of Dogs at Battersea Dogs and Cats Home.
The series concludes with a tribute to Paul, which reads: ‘In loving memory of Paul O’Grady MBE 1955-2023’
Paul O’Grady’s Great Elephant Adventure starts Sunday evening at 8pm on ITV and ITVX.
The series is a nod to Paul’s lifelong love of animals, having spent much of his later life filming his show For The Love Of Dogs at Battersea Dogs and Cats Home (pictured)