Comedian suffers 'complications' from hip surgery at 89

Legendary Australian comedian Barry Humphries has been taken to hospital after his health took a turn to the worse.

The 89-year-old has been readmitted to St Vincent’s Hospital in Sydney just days after being discharged following hip replacement surgery, it has been reported.

He had the operation last month after falling at his home and breaking a hip.

Channel Seven entertainment reporter Peter Ford said: ‘Things are tough. All we can do at this point in time was to do a good shout out to Barry Humphries and say Australia loves you and we will always be grateful for everything you have given us. I think Barry has a fighting spirit that he won't give up easily.’

Humphries picked up his phone to a Sydney Morning Herald reporter this morning, but after saying ‘hello’ his wife Lizzie continued the rest of the conversation, saying her husband is ‘fine’.

The Dame Edna creator  last month told the newspaper he’d been in agony since breaking his hip.

‘It was the most ridiculous thing, like all domestic incidents are,’ he said. ‘I was reaching for a book, my foot got caught on a rug or something, and down I went.’

He added that he was undergoing ‘very painful’ rehabilitation sessions.

Before his fall, Humphries had been touring Australia with a show of career reminiscences, The Man Behind The Mask, with his next scheduled performance due to take place in Newcastle, New South Wales, on May 5.

In 2007, Humphries suffered complications after appendix surgery, forcing him to quit work for six months.

Published: 19 Apr 2023