Loving pictures show the touching bond between Duncan Norvelle and his partner who has paid a touching tribute to the late comedian whose ‘camp routines’ fell out of favour with TV chiefs.
The comedian, known for his catchphrase ‘Chase me’, died in hospital surrounded by his loved ones on Thursday after suffering from a chest infection and sepsis.
His partner Lynn Trevallion said she never realised ‘how much’ she loved him until his death and recalled how he wanted to get back on stage after his stroke in 2012 to prove he could ‘make them laugh’ still.
‘I just wanted another day with him, but I didn’t want him back to suffer, he wasn’t suffering, but I didn’t want him just to linger,’ she said.
‘I loved him so much, I never realised how much I loved him really, you don’t, do you until you lose someone?’
The comic, from Walton on the Wolds, was admitted to Pilgrim Hospital in Boston two weeks ago.
He previously suffered a stroke in 2012 which paralysed his left side and meant he was unable to move his arm, but he could walk when supported with a stick.
Ms Trevallion recalled that one of his first comeback shows after his stroke was in memory of murdered soldier Lee Rigby, and his final time on stage raised money for stroke and prostate cancer charities.
Duncan Norvelle pictured with his partner Lynn Trevallion who said she never realised ‘how much’ she loved him until his death
The comedian, known for his catchphrase ‘Chase me’, died in hospital surrounded by his loved ones on Thursday after suffering from a chest infection and sepsis
A note on his Facebook page posted on Thursday, which was signed off by Ms Trevallion and his children Yasmin, Jack and Sophie, announced he had died ‘peacefully’ that morning
‘He got back on stage after his stroke and just proved to everyone that he could still get a standing ovation every single time he did a show,’ she said.
‘And he did loads and loads of shows after his stroke because they said (he) quite possibly would never walk or talk properly, and he could talk perfectly.’
Reflecting on his comedic style, Ms Trevallion said: ‘His type of comedy doesn’t happen anymore, he’s probably last of the legends of true variety comedy, so many have passed now.
‘He was a gentle comedian, never swore on stage, he was a clean act. Sir Ken Dodd loved Duncan, because he said he was like him, “a good, clean act'”, and he invited Duncan on his 80th birthday to be the entertainment for him.’
She added he ‘never made fun of’ the audience and ‘he only ever took the mickey out of himself’.
Ms Trevallion also described Norvelle, who worked with the late comics Tommy Cooper and Frank Carson, as a ‘private person’ who enjoyed gardening, cricket, golf and snooker.
A note on his Facebook page posted on Thursday, which was signed off by Ms Trevallion and his children Yasmin, Jack and Sophie, announced he had died ‘peacefully’ that morning.
‘Rest in peace our comedy legend, so deeply loved and will be so very missed’, it added.
Comedian Duncan Norvelle died at the age of 66 from a chest infection and sepsis – 12 years after suffering a stroke which left half his body paralysed
Norvelle spent the last 12 years living with his partner Lynn
She desrcibed him as probably last of the legends of true variety comed
In a tribute, his management said: ‘All I can say is Duncan was a comedy genius and British icon ahead of his time who loved showbusiness.
‘We managed Duncan and re-released his album Music From My Life, but more than anything he became a good friend and will be truly missed in the entertainment world.’
The entertainer – who at times appeared on stage in a wheelchair or walking with the aid of a stick – bravely incorporated his health struggles into his act, describing himself as ‘a special-needs guest star’ and joking that he had had to change his catchphrase to ‘push me’.
But, with a series of failed marriages and relationships behind him, Norvelle fell on hard times.
Two companies he set up in 2016, both called Chase Me Management, were dissolved the following year after each was subject to a compulsory strike off.
Norvelle, 66, continued to travel the country performing in pubs and small clubs while his sole mainstream TV appearance was an 80s special edition of Pointless Celebrities in 2019.
He also worked on cruise ships and earned extra cash recording personalised video messages for fans.
Duncan was familiar face on British TV in the 1980s and was known for his catchphrase ‘chase me!’ and camp humour
Duncan Norvelle’s run-down terraced home in the Romford area of London where he lived towards the end of his life
Following his stroke, Duncan Norvelle defiantly said: ‘I saw a lot of stroke patients give up and not question what the doctors were saying to them but I was determined to get better and live my life’
Norvelle rose to fame on the ITV variety show Saturday Royal in the early 1980s
He spent the last 12 years living with Linda, in her two bedroomed home which she bought for £225,000 in January 2012.
Norvelle, who was also known for his impressions, was a regular on prime time TV in the 1980’s after shooting to nationwide fame on ITV variety show Saturday Royal in the 1980s.
He went on to host the pilot of Blind Date and regularly appeared on popular entertainment programmes including Blankety Blank, 3-2-1, Surprise! Surprise!, The Bob Monkhouse Show and the Keith Harris Show.
But, like many performers of his generation, his star waned as so-called ‘alternative comedians’ broke into the mainstream.
Norvelle died virtually penniless after his camp act fell out of favour with TV bosses.
A source said: ‘Duncan was not gay but his act was based on camp humour which was popular at the time.
‘He once said he based his persona on a cross between Michael Crawford’s Frank Spencer and John Inman’s Mr Humphries in Are You Being Served.
‘His TV bookings dried up as a new breed of left-leaning political comedians took over our screens. He suddenly found himself out in the cold.’
Norvelle, who was born in Loughborough, Leicestershire, was outlived by his mother who until recently lived in a property in the town.
He left school at 16 and took a job in a menswear shop but within a year he quit to follow his dream of being an entertainer, after winning £20 in a talent show while on holiday in Bournemouth.
Duncan on Pointless Celebrities in 2019
He appeared on a celebrity comedian edition of Come Dine With Me with Gina Yashere, Paul Tonkinson and Sean Hughes
He went on to perform stand-up sets at prestigious venues including the London Palladium.
Before he rose to fame Norvelle’s first child Sophie, 40, was born after he had a relationship with her mother Trudie, 64.
She was said to have been travelling back from Spain as her father lay dying but was not able to make it back in time.
At the height of his fame Norvelle married first wife Tina Fisher, 63, and the couple had a daughter Yasmin, 35.
The couple divorced and Tina remarried six years later while Norvelle went on to wed second wife Jane, 58.
The couple had a son Jack, 15, before splitting. It was while they were going through a divorce that Norvelle was hit by his life-threatening health crisis.
While his TV work had dried up his busy schedule saw him driving thousands of miles a year to perform in clubs and theatres across the country.
At the same time he was travelling for hours each week to spend time with Jack who was just three years old and living hundreds of miles away in Barnsley, South Yorkshire.
Norvelle, who had been a heavy smoker, has told how he was ‘living at breakneck speed’ and ‘didn’t have time’ to worry about his health.
In April 2012 he was preparing for summer season with Cannon and Ball when he suffered his first stroke at his home in Blackpool.
He had gone to bed early the night before with what he thought was migraine but was woken by a phone call. As he stumbled out of bed his legs folded and he collapsed on the floor.
In 2012 Duncan suffered a stroke and was told afterwards that it was unlikely he would ever walk or talk properly again (seen with Roger De Courcey)
While in hospital, Norvelle suffered a second, more-powerful stroke which shook his whole body into the air
Living alone, he dragged himself downstairs to the phone and called a cab to take him to hospital.
Speaking of the drama he said: ‘I knew I’d had a stroke because I’d seen the adverts on the telly and knew I had to get to hospital quickly. But it was a Friday night in Blackpool. I thought going by taxi would be quicker than waiting for an ambulance.’
In hospital he suffered a second more powerful stroke which shook his whole body into the air.
He said: ‘I felt this one jolting through my entire body and it seemed to go on forever.’
Norvelle was immediately given an injection to put him into an induced coma.
That stroke, caused by a blood clot in his brain, left him paralysed down the left side of his body.
He was told it was unlikely that he would ever walk or talk properly again.
Norvelle was visited by fellow comedians Joe Pasquale, Ricky Tomlinson and Roy Walker who helped to lift his spirits.
Another visitor was his old friend Linda, known as Lynn, who went on to become his companion until his final days.
She said after visiting him in hospital: ‘I was told he’d had a heart attack.
‘When I saw him I was shocked. His face had fallen and he couldn’t lift his head from the pillow. I hadn’t realised how serious a stroke could be.’
Fellow comedian and Duncan’s friend Tommy Cannon wrote: ‘Very sad news to hear the passing of one of my mates, Duncan Norvelle today’
Comedian Jim Davidson also paid tribute to the star, as he took to social media to write: ‘All of us at Ustreme were saddened to hear about the passing of Duncan Norvelle’
Socialite Lizzie Cundy was one of the first to pay tribute to him, writing on Twitter: ‘Very sad to hear comedian Duncan Norvelle has passed away’
Despite his grim prognosis, during the next 18 months in hospital Norvelle worked with a speech therapist and a physiotherapist to regain his speech and mobility.
He later said: ‘I saw a lot of stroke patients give up and not question what the doctors were saying to them but I was determined to get better and live my life.’
He went on to follow a strict dairy and sugar-free diet which helped to keep his Type 2 diabetes under control, a condition he developed after his stroke.
Norvelle added: ‘It was an incredible wake-up call and I now live my life very differently.’
He said: ‘They said I wouldn’t be able to walk or talk again but I proved them wrong. There are a lot more people having strokes then there ever was.
‘Mine was due to pressure and stress. You have to get your blood pressure checked regularly. I’ve learned to live with it and to make it part of my acting.’
In 2015, Norvelle chose the Embassy Theatre, Skegness, as his first performance after over three years off-stage, promising that funds from his show would be allocated to the Stroke Association.
Despite attempting to get his career back on track he continued to suffer a series of setbacks.
In 2019 he was even cruelly kicked off a variety show after organisers allegedly said he was ‘too slow’ and ‘wheelchair bound’.
A performance at a club in Rugeley, Staffs was cancelled at the last minute.
Covid proved another setback for the star but he attempted to make another comeback in 2021 announcing he was ‘back in business’ and taking bookings for comedy shows and after dinner speaking.
In a Christmas message posted in 2021 he thanked fans for continuing to support him saying: ‘It’s so nice to still be wanted to perform for your events.
‘Laughter is the best medicine that anyone can be given. I also want to thank my incredible partner Lynn. She is my rock and always will be and without her I would be lost.’
