For The Love of Dogs presenter Paul O’Grady tragically died just over a year ago, leaving his five canine friends behind. The 67-year-old had been renowned for the deep emotion he felt for his animal companions – and husband Andre wanted them to have the chance to say a final farewell to their owner.
Appearing on Loose Women on Tuesday morning, he confessed that he’d taken advice from an 85-year-old fan before deciding to set the stage for the goodbye. “She was very worried about the dogs and that they had to say goodbye,” he explained on the ITV show.
“It stayed at the back of my mind and I thought I must attend to what she’s asking me to do, so just before he was buried I took the dogs to say goodbye.” Heartbreakingly, he confessed that not all of them seemed to recognise Paul after death.
“It was really interesting to see that some of them engaged with Paul, but others just swept out as if he wasn’t there anymore,” he lamented. Andre also elaborated on how heartbroken he felt to be met with the tragic sight of his partner of 18 years unconscious as he relived the moment.
“I didn’t want to be in the house remembering the shock I had gone through,” he grimaced, telling of how he’d travelled to New Zealand following the death. “I don’t wish for my worst enemy to find the person that you love unconscious on the floor,” he declared.
“When we got married [six years before he died], for me it was forever,” Andre vowed, adding: “l didn’t realise that it was [going to be] short-lived.”
He was flooded with letters of condolence following Paul’s tragic collapse, including one from Queen Camilla which left him shell-shocked.
“I must confess it took me so long to reply. It’s not every day you receive a letter from the Queen,” Andre exclaimed.
“I would wake up and think, I must reply to her letter. I would sit down and I would be like, ‘Dear Camilla…no. Dear Queen Camilla…no.’ “In the end it was like, you’re not writing a book, you’re writing a thank you letter and you just have to go with what is in your heart, so I finally wrote to her.”
Paul and Camilla had appeared together on a royal special of For The Love Of Dogs, which aired in December 2022, and the pair formed a strong bond.
Andre had previously told The Mirror: “Obviously, she’s the Queen of England, but for [Paul] she was just Camilla.”
“They could talk, and laugh, and just be normal with each other. I think probably that’s what she loved about him so much.”
Meanwhile, Andre has reassured fans concerned about the dogs’ welfare, who have been wondering whether they are grieving and pining for Paul, as he clarified that they are “doing fabulous”.
With Paul no longer around to film his TV show, it has begun a new series under the helm of Alison Hammond – but for many fans’, their idol’s spirit continues to live on.
