Bobby Davro recalled the last time he spoke to fellow comedian Freddie Starr in an emotional interview hours after news of his death broke.
Starr was found dead at his home in Spain on Thursday. He was 76.
On Friday morning, Davro told Good Morning Britain that he “could have been one of the last people to speak to him”.
“I got in touch with him, I found his number and phoned him up,” he said. “At first he didn't really feel like talking and called me back.
“He said, 'How you doing Bob' and I said, 'Alright, how are you Freddie? Would you like to meet up for a cup of tea? I'm in town.' And he said, 'No, I've not been too well'.”
Davro told hosts Kate Garraway and Ben Shephard that he “wants to remember the Freddie we all remembered” and enjoy archive footage of him as an entertainer.
Shortly after the news broke, Davro paid tribute to Starr on Twitter, hailing him “one of the greats”.
“I've just heard that Freddie Starr has died,” he wrote. “He was the funniest man I have ever seen. I'm so sad we have lost one of our greatest comedy talents. RIP Freddie.”
Comedian Jim Davidson and Britain’s Got Talent judge Amanda Holden were among those who paid tribute to Starr online.
Starr, who was the centre of one of the biggest headlines in history when it was claimed he “ate a hamster”, appeared on I’m A Celebrity in 2011 but was forced to pull out after a Bushtucker trial.
A meal of fermented egg and a camel toe forced comic Starr to leave the show after he suffered an allergic reaction and had to be taken to hospital.
His appearance came a year after he had recovered from quadruple bypass surgery following a heart attack.
Freddie Starr - In pictures
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