Paul O'Grady once admitted he thought he died 20 years ago when he suffered his first heart attack.
The TV, radio and stage star passed away "unexpectedly but peacefully" at the age of 67 earlier this week, his husband announced.
He had many health issues over the years, with the late star revealing he suffered from three cardiac arrests.
Paul's first heart attack happened in 2002 and then again four years later.
Paul had another one in 2014, as well as kidney failure. He also suffered from a lot of symptoms when he contracted Covid.
After his first heart attack, he said he gave a speech on his 'deathbed' which he compared to Hollywood icon Lana Turner.
Speaking on the BBC's Desert Island Discs in 2003 he was asked about his first heart attack in 2002 and if it almost killed him off.
He replied: "It did yeah. Well my mum and dad both died of heart disease, my grandparents died of heart disease, my sister had a heart attack, my brother had a heart attack so it is in the family.
“No warning at all. I had been out to a charity dinner, came home and said I don't feel too well and instantly bang on the floor and it just happens like that. You know, I didn't get any pains in the arms or, or any warnings like that."
Asked by Sue Lawley if he thought that was it, he added: "I did the full Lana Turner deathbed speech. ‘Play the Meditation from Thais[Méditation by Jules Massenet]’. I ain't popping my clogs until the Meditations played!”
He chose this operatic song as one of his choices on the show and said he listened to it regularly at home as he found it relaxing.
On the incident, he explained: "Yeah, I did still have a sense of humour. I wasn't scared. I thought I was quite relaxed. There was no white light. There's no angel going 'ooooh'. None of that nonsense.
"So I just lay there and I thought I don't think I'm gonna pull out of this, because I felt so wretched. I've never felt anything like it before in my life and hope I never feel anything like it again."
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