Sir Norman Wisdom was a “beloved comic genius” and “true icon of the entertainment world”, the agency which discovered the comedian and actor said yesterday.
The 95-year-old died peacefully at the Abbotswood Nursing Home on the Isle of Man on Tuesday after suffering a series of strokes in the last six months.
Sir Norman visited Malta in the 1970s. During this time, he was considering buying a property to visit the island more often, sources said.
On one occasion while he was being driven round the island and arrived at Lija, he ordered the driver to stop the car immediately. He got out of the car and began clowning around because he told his friends: “I have always wanted to play the fool in the William Shakespeare, tragedy King Lear.”
Yesterday, Jan Kennedy, managing director of Billy Marsh Associates, the agency which discovered Sir Norman in the early 1950s, paid tribute to his “remarkable” career.
She said: “Norman was simply a beloved comic genius. His whole personality projected a childlike warmth and innocent appeal that touched the hearts of everyone.
“Norman literally made audiences worldwide cry with laughter, and his endearing talents live on through the universal happiness of his films and recordings.
“We all loved and admired him as a true icon of the entertainment world. He will be sorely missed and our heartfelt thoughts are with his family at this sad time.”
Sir Norman, at 5ft 4in, was the ultimate slapstick artist, toppling his pint-sized frame to the floor time and time again.
From a poverty-stricken childhood, he starred in 32 sitcoms, 19 films and won Royal approval with a string of Command Performances. His success also made him a multi-millionaire knight of the realm.
But in the last six months his mental and physical health had declined before he passed away, his family said.
In a brief statement, they added: “He (Sir Norman) had maintained a degree of independence until a few days ago.
“However, over the last few days his condition rapidly declined.
“He was in no pain or distress and peacefully passed over at 6.46 p.m. on October 4.”
The family asked for time to grieve a “much loved father and grandfather”.
Following his death, many of Sir Norman’s friends and colleagues paid tribute to the actor.
Phil Day, who had been his publicist since 1969, said: “He never turned down any request. He never threw a tantrum. He was 100 per cent professional all of the time.
“Of all the artists I’ve ever worked with, he’s been the closest. It’s a sad day.”
He admitted the star could be “unpredictable”, adding: “Whatever he said, you had to look for the tongue in the cheek to see if he was serious. I have never met anyone in the profession who didn’t like him, right up to royalty.
“I’ve been with him with members of the Royal Family and the hairs on the back of my neck have stood up at things he’s said. I can’t think of anyone else who could get away with it.”
Johnny Mans, Sir Norman’s agent for more than 30 years, told BBC News: “It’s absolutely devastating. I thought he’d go on until he was at least 100 and get his telegram from the Queen.
“He was not only a client, he was my best friend.”
Born Norman Wisden on February 4, 1915, he had a tough upbringing in Marylebone, London. The son of a chauffeur and a dressmaker, he had one older brother Fred. His parents divorced when he was nine and he was brought up by his father.
Money was short and Sir Norman’s father was often away for long periods, either driving, or in a drunken rage.
He left school at 13 and took a job as an errand boy for Lipton’s Teas for 50p a week.
His first break into showbiz came in 1946 at a music hall in Islington, north London, and he won a place in his first Royal Command Performance in 1952. Rank soon snapped him up for a seven-year contract.
In 1981, Sir Norman broke with the slapstick tradition and played a doomed cancer victim in a harrowing BBC television play. He won widespread acclaim for his portrayal of a retired salesman in Going Gently opposite Fulton MacKay.
He married showgirl Freda Simpson when he was 27 but they divorced in 1969. They had two children, Nick and Jacqui.
Despite Sir Norman’s woebegone image, the keen Arsenal supporter had a sharp business mind and dealt in stocks and shares, laughing all the way to the bank.
Kevin Powis, who directed Sir Norman in the film Expresso in 2007, said: “Sir Norman was a true legend and it was a great honour to have even been in a room with him, let alone direct him on the film Expresso in what now turns out to be his last film role – just as he had said it would be.
“Sir Norman was just a great pleasure to be around. He never stopped entertaining and the crowds who came to see him just couldn’t get enough of him. I remember a long line of people waiting for autographs.
“I know Sir Norman was very tired but I remember that there was no way he was going anywhere until he had given every autograph and picture they wanted – he had a smile and joke for each one.
“The time I spent on Expresso with him is a memory I will treasure forever.”
Michael Grade, who was a child when he first met Sir Norman through his family’s showbusiness connections, said: “He was a superstar.”
Mr Grade later worked with the comedy star when he worked for Sir Norman’s agent, Billy Marsh.
“They were a fantastic partnership, Billy and Norman. Billy discovered him on a talent show, signed him up and guided his career through the 1950s, 1960s and 1970s.
“I knew Norman very, very well, at first as a family friend through my uncle, Lord Delfont (the theatrical impresario). I can remember I used to play with him on the floor, rolling around.
“It’s very hard to understand in today’s age just how big a star Norman was.
“When his new films opened they always opened at the New Victoria Cinema in London and there used to be queues round the block overnight to get in to see him.
“When he played the Palladium he would sell out 13 shows a week and he would play for 16, 18 or 20 weeks.”
“He went to Broadway when he appeared in Sammy Cahn and Jimmy Van Heusen’s musical version of Hobson’s Choice, which was called Walking Happy.
“It wasn’t a huge hit but the reviews were enormous and we got a year’s run out of it.”
Mr Grade continued: “He was the second Chaplin. Norman was a comedy genius.
“He was the highest grossing film star of his day, the biggest grossing theatrical star and he topped the chart. That’s not a bad career.”
The producer of Sir Norman’s final film, Martin Nigel Davey, said it had been “an honour to work with him” on the short film Expresso.
In the 2007 10-minute film set in a café, the veteran star plays a vicar who gets attacked by a fly.
Mr Davey said: “Even then at 92 his ideas were great, he would do alternative endings for us and in between takes have a crew and press in stitches.
“The film was shown at the 2007 Cannes Film Festival and went on to raise money for Macmillan Cancer Support.
“After we finished filming, his manager said ‘That’s it, he’s officially retired – he’s not making another film’.
“I could see then that he was slipping into dementia slightly, but he was great.
“I went to visit him at the home and showed him the film Expresso and he kept wanting to see it again and again.”
Sir Norman had already retired when he agreed to make the short charity film and Kevin Powis had thought there was no chance of signing him up.
“The only explanation we ever had was when it was put to him, this small film and he played the part of a vicar, instead of just turning it away he just turned to his agent and said ‘you know what, I’ve never been a vicar’.
“That was his phrase. Out of all his achievements he thought ‘I’m a lucky little devil’. In his mind he was lucky but he made luck himself,” Mr Powis added.