Barry Humphries, known internationally for his alter ego Dame Edna, has died in a Sydney hospital. He was 89.
Biographer Anne Pender wrote in 2010 that Humphries was both "the most important comedian to emerge since Charlie Chaplin" and "most significant theatrical figure of our time" He suffered indirectly from the mental problems suffered by his mother who in an outburst donated all of her son's books to the Salvation Army. Until the last moment he enjoyed his 10 grandchildren.