Poignant empty chair as stars remember Ronnie Corbett

IT WAS the chair from which he had told a hundred stories. His absence told its own.
The Service of Thanksgiving for the Life and Work of the Ronnie Corbett at Westminster AbbeyThe Service of Thanksgiving for the Life and Work of the Ronnie Corbett at Westminster Abbey
The Service of Thanksgiving for the Life and Work of the Ronnie Corbett at Westminster Abbey

Constructed from plastic coated steel, a pair of loose cushions slung over, it was more studio prop than fine furniture, and it sat uncomfortably among the gilt and Gothic arches of Westminster Abbey.

But as show business gathered to celebrate the life of one of its giants - in stature if not in size - his old “story chair” was worth a thousand words.

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Ronnie Corbett was, said his friend Jimmy Tarbuck, a poet of comedy. “When a poet dies he leaves us with the laughter.”

The Service of Thanksgiving for the Life and Work of the Ronnie Corbett at Westminster AbbeyThe Service of Thanksgiving for the Life and Work of the Ronnie Corbett at Westminster Abbey
The Service of Thanksgiving for the Life and Work of the Ronnie Corbett at Westminster Abbey

His old boss, the former BBC executive James Moir, called him a “comedy alchemist, who lifted the word from the page and transformed it into echoing, golden laughter”.

Stephen Fry, Joanna Lumley and Sarah, Duchess of York, were also among those at the Service of Thanksgiving to celebrate Corbett’s life and work.

He died in March last year, aged 85, and would have been “absolutely delighted and amazed” by the tribute, Miss Lumley said.

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In drawing the congregation’s attention to Corbett’s chair, the Dean of Westminster, the Very Rev Dr John Hall, attempted a little light comedy of his own. “It’s good day from me and it’s good day from him,” he said, after speaking of the “comic genius that gave immeasurable joy to countless people.”

Ronnie Corbett's widow Anne Hart in Westminister Abbey, London during the Service of Thanksgiving for the Life and Work of the comedian who died last year.Ronnie Corbett's widow Anne Hart in Westminister Abbey, London during the Service of Thanksgiving for the Life and Work of the comedian who died last year.
Ronnie Corbett's widow Anne Hart in Westminister Abbey, London during the Service of Thanksgiving for the Life and Work of the comedian who died last year.

But there were tears, too, especially as the actor Rob Brydon recalled his friendship and golfing partnership with Corbett.

Wiping aside a tear, he said Corbett helped him overcome his nerves when he heard him laugh, “out there in the darkness”, with that “unmis­takable, beautiful voice” while on stage early in his career in Croydon “living the dream”.

The pair became friends after Corbett visited Brydon backstage.

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“In these horribly dark and troubled times he’s brought us all together ... We will never forget you,” he said.

The Service of Thanksgiving for the Life and Work of the Ronnie Corbett at Westminster AbbeyThe Service of Thanksgiving for the Life and Work of the Ronnie Corbett at Westminster Abbey
The Service of Thanksgiving for the Life and Work of the Ronnie Corbett at Westminster Abbey

“One of the great pleasures of my life was to walk down the street with Ronnie Corbett and witness ... wonderful faces which would light up with joy when they saw him.”

It was left to Tarbuck to lighten the mood. When Corbett was an RAF officer, he had got his uniform from Mothercare, he said.

He had told Corbett at an audience with the Queen not to bow too low, lest she couldn’t see him. “He told me to go away” Tarbuck added.

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It was testament to Corbett’s enduring popularity that three generations of comedians were represented yesterday.

Ronnie Corbett's widow Anne Hart in Westminister Abbey, London during the Service of Thanksgiving for the Life and Work of the comedian who died last year.Ronnie Corbett's widow Anne Hart in Westminister Abbey, London during the Service of Thanksgiving for the Life and Work of the comedian who died last year.
Ronnie Corbett's widow Anne Hart in Westminister Abbey, London during the Service of Thanksgiving for the Life and Work of the comedian who died last year.

Barry Cryer, the Leeds gag writer who provided material for him when he was Danny La Rue’s foil in the cabaret clubs of the old West End, sat close to Graham Norton and to Nicholas Parsons, who was among the first people to appear when TV gained a second channel.

Dame Barbara Windsor, who had appeared opposite Corbett in the ill-fated Lionel Bart musical, Twang!! in the mid-1960s, recalled: “He always knew his lines. He was a breath of fresh air.”

Despite its spectacular failure, Corbett had reason to be grateful to the show. Its cancellation freed him to take up an offer from David Frost to appear on his new TV series, on which he was paired with Ronnie Barker. The two of them went from the BBC, to ITV and back again, but Corbett never had to go back into cabaret.

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