Paul O'Grady's poignant three-word message on final farewell episode on ITV show

28 September 2023 , 20:21

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Paul O'Grady

If you are lucky enough to get a new dictionary for Christmas this year, don’t be surprised if the entry for the word “poignant” has been given the following update:

“For a perfect example, see the opening line of the farewell episode of ITV1’s Paul O’Grady: For The Love Of Dogs.” I mean, last night’s final visit to Battersea Dogs & Cats Home in the company of the much-missed Scouse funnyman was always going to be an emotional experience.

I wasn’t expecting a sucker punch to the guts right at the very start though. “Life is full of unknown twists and turns,” said Paul, over a typically jaunty soundtrack. “So it’s always best to expect the unexpected.” He wasn’t talking about himself, ­obviously.

He was simply introducing us to “Bat­­tersea’s grumpiest resident”, a five-year-old bulldog called Gary, whose owners had sadly decided they could no longer look after him. “When the sun is shining and everyone’s got a spring in their step, Battersea is a happy place to be,” trilled Paul. “But Gary is not having any of it.”

Paul passed away earlier this year

Paul stopped short of asking Gary if he was chewing a wasp, but he was probably thinking it. Naturally, Paul then made it his mission to cheer Gary up. First he treated him to a chorus of Put On A Happy Face. Then he tried him with a gag from the Doggy Joke Book.

Furious chimp launches bottle at girl filming him leaving her bleeding at zoo

“I went to the zoo yesterday, there was only one dog in it. It was a Shih Tzu.” It didn’t get a laugh from Gary (well, he’s a dog). It made me smile though. It also made me wonder whether many other presenters could have got away with cheekily slipping in a rude word on a family show like that.

Speaking of which, I don’t envy ITV the job of finding someone to replace Paul. But replace him they should. Paul would almost certainly have argued that no one was bigger than the show and that the animals were the real stars. Besides, surely only the most short-sighted of bosses would simply toss aside a TV institution that has been bringing joy to millions for over a decade.

Ian Hyland