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New Book Reveals Paul O’Grady Declined Implantable Defibrillator in Final Months

The authorised account by colleague Malcolm Prince, published with daughter Sharyn’s blessing, recounts his choice to avoid further hospital treatment.

Overview

  • Fresh excerpts describe O’Grady refusing an ICD after a week at William Harvey Hospital, opting to keep working on Annie and a dog show rather than recuperate.
  • In a text to his daughter, he wrote that a cardiologist wanted him to have a defib but he was not having one, calling the advice overcautious.
  • Manager Joan Marshrons says he feared losing control and potential embarrassment if a device activated on camera or onstage.
  • The book notes he died on 28 March 2023 from sudden cardiac arrhythmia, with the declined device presented as potentially life‑saving.
  • Paul O’Grady – Not The Same Without You also raises concerns he may have struggled with eating linked to maintaining Lily Savage’s slim look and is being serialised by the Mirror.