Paul Chuckle: Barry would want me to carry on

Paul Chuckle has said losing his brother Barry has been “the worst feeling ever” but he knows his ChuckleVision co-star would want him to carry on.

The veteran entertainer, whose real name is Paul Elliott, found fame alongside Barry as one half of the Chuckle Brothers.

Barry died at the weekend at the age of 73 following an illness.

Paul wrote on Twitter: “I’d like to say a big thank you to everyone for all your messages. They’ve been hard to read but I read every one.

“It’s the worst feeling ever but I have to carry on as I know Barry would want me to, having always been so supportive of each other in both work and our personal lives.”

The funeral for Barry will take place at the New York Stadium in Rotherham on August 17, attended by family and close friends.

The stadium is the home of Rotherham United football club, of which Barry and Paul were honorary life presidents.

A statement from the Elliott family said: “As a family we would welcome fans to celebrate his life and pay their respects with us, outside of the New York Stadium.

“There is an event for invited family and close friends which respectfully is private and by invite only.

“We are overwhelmed with the love and support we have received over the last few days, and thank everyone concerned!”

Paul previously said he did not know “until fairly recently” how ill his brother was.

In an emotional tribute to Barry, Paul previously said he is “totally devastated at the death of my brother, partner and my very best pal”.

He said in a statement to the Press Association: “I still can’t believe he’s gone and that we will never perform together again.

“I knew nothing of how serious his illness was until fairly recently.

“He always said that he wanted to die on stage and that he would work right to the end which he more or less did.

“He’d been in a lot of pain with his legs for quite a while and I thought it was sciatica which I’ve had trouble with in the past, so I knew how painful it can be.

“And he told me that he thinks that’s what he’d got.

“I also think that he knew that if myself or our manager Phil Dale found out that it was or could be more serious, we would have said to him you have to stop working.

“Plus Phil would have stopped putting work in our diaries.

“But our Barry kept it to himself and he kept it from me, knowing how close we were and we have always been.

“He was a trooper in every sense of the word and right to the end!”

Barry’s cause of death has not yet been confirmed by the family, despite reports suggesting the star had cancer.