Ronnie Corbett dead: Comedian 'had motor neurone disease'

'He never once grumbled or complained', says his wife Anne

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Ronnie Corbett had been living with motor neurone disease before he passed away aged 85, his wife has said.

The beloved entertainer died surrounded by his family on Thursday. Corbett is best remembered for appearing in comedic sketches such as “Fork Handles” in The Two Ronnies show alongside Ronnie Barker for 16 years.

Anne Hart, his wife for almost 50 years, has now said he was diagnosed with motor neurone disease in May of last year after feeling unwell for several months. Hart and her two daughters Emma and Sophie took it in turns to care for Corbett, who was also using a ventilator machine to help his breathing.

She told the Daily Mail they would not have been aware of what the disease was had it not been for the film The Theory of Everything in which Eddie Redmayne portrays Stephen Hawking, who also has the disease.

“He was not in pain and up to the last 48 hours, he was fully conscious and aware of everything,” she said. “Throughout his whole illness, he never once grumbled or complained. No one could have been more courageous.“

Journalist Michael Thornton who spoke to Anne and is a friend of the Corbett family also said he had proposed Corbett to receive a knighthood and claims this had received support among other high-profile entertainers like Dame Judi Dench and Sir Bruce Forsyth.