Paul O'Grady tribute: Queen Consort Camilla 'deeply saddened' at star's death as his 'infectious humour lit up lives'

THE Queen Consort Camilla is “deeply saddened” at the death of national treasure Paul O’Grady – saying that his “warm heart and infectious humour lit up the lives of so many”.

The Lily Savage and Radio 2 star passed away “unexpectedly but peacefully” yesterday evening.

The Queen Consort had a special bond with Paul O’Grady and worked closely with him in support of Battersea Dogs & Cats Home.

She will be sharing her sympathies with Paul’s family privately in due course, the Palace said.

The royal family’s official Twitter account paid tribute to O’Grady, posting an image of Camilla with the star.

It read: “Deeply saddened to hear of the death of Paul O’Grady, who worked closely with Her Majesty in support of @Battersea_, providing lots of laughter and many waggy-tailed memories.”

As part of their tributes, ITV will be reshowing the episode of O’Grady’s hit show For the Love of Dogs, featuring the Queen Consort at 5pm.

Battersea Dogs and Cats Home paid tribute to O’Grady as a “devoted animal lover” and a champion for the underdog”.

The organisation, for which the TV star was an ambassador, praised his “razor-sharp humour and perpetual generosity and warmth”.

Chief executive Peter Laurie said: “Battersea will forever remember Paul as a devoted animal lover with the biggest heart, who fell head over heels in love with every dog he met at our centres.

“Paul will always be associated with Battersea and we are truly saddened to have lost such a true friend and huge part of our charity.

He continued: “Paul had an extremely hands-on approach as a Battersea Ambassador and has been fundamental in helping our charity to communicate important campaign messages.

“He was a champion for the underdog and would do anything to ensure all animals live a healthy and happy life. He will be dearly missed.”

It comes after Amanda Holden and Piers Morgan led the celebrity tributes to Paul.

Susanna Reid and Martin Lewis also presented an emotional segment celebrating Paul’s life on Good Morning Britain, and Lorraine Kelly had tears in her eyes as she paid tribute to her pal.

Paul’s death comes just days after his heartbreaking final post mourning the loss of his pet pig Tom Tom.

The tragic final picture of the TV legend shows him enjoying a drink at a bar with now-heartbroken fans.