Cartoonist Bill Leak farewelled

The late News Ltd cartoonist Bill Leak (left) who died suddenly at the age of 61 was farewelled in a memorial service today at Sydney's Town Hall. 

Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull and wife Lucy were there along with former PM John Howard. Media personalities who attended included broadcasters Richard Fidler and Wendy Harmer, dozens of Leak's former News' colleagues and comedian Barry Humphries who was a long time pal of Leaks.

Humphries drew a round of applause when he claimed the only memorial service he'd like to attend was one for the Human Right's Commission which had been locked in a battle over some of Leak's more controversial cartoons. President of the Commission Gillian Triggs (pictured above) has held her ground while under a sustained attack by the right side of politics.

Whispers found Leak's cartoons a tad on the old fashioned side but we enjoyed his many Archibald portraits which we have included below. Leak never won the main prize but he did win the Packer's Prize once.
All part of life's rich tapestry in Sydney's never dull social life.

arriving at the memorial: Barry Humphries & Lizzie Spender * Malcolm & Lucy Turnbull

Bill Leak Archibald portraits : Sir Les Patterson * Paul LePetit *  Bob Hawke * Graham Richardson * Dame Edna Everage

Spotted..

Barry Humphries and wife Lizzie Spender were spotted celebrating Lizzie's birthday at Billy Kwongs in Potts Point this week. Joining the celebrations was film director Bruce Beresford who directed Barry in the Barry McKenzie films. Lizzie is 66 and is the daughter of the late famed poet Stephen Spender and his musician wife Natasha.

Dame Edna takes the West End

It's the final leg of her world-wide farewell tour. Dame Edna Everage opened last night at the Palladium in London's West End and was as always, a huge hit with her grateful audience. Here are a few snaps from the night and the after party. pics :© DavidJensen 2013

The Hobbit Premiers in Wellington

Stars of the film: Cate Blanchett, Hugo Weaving, James Nesbitt, Yao Chen and Brooke Fraser

Guests emerged from a Hobbit 'house' and walked a red carpet that stretched 800mtrs through several city blocks watched by 100,000 fans!.

Director Peter Jackson & Katie Jackson

Dane Rumble

Sylvester McCoy, Lizzie Spender, Barry Humphries

Elijah Wood

Dame Edna,Vagina Deniers & Gladioli Interuptus

It was bound to be a night of laughter, memories and tears as Dame Edna Everage took to the stage at the Capitol Theatre to bade farewell at the beginning of her final tour, Eat Pray Laugh !.

The first hour was given over to Sir Les Patterson who despite a severe attack of Montezuma's Revenge insisted on treating audience members to an on-stage BBQ in between Sir Les rushing for relief in a handy stage loo complete with amplified sound effects.

Sir Les introduced his brother Gerard Patterson, a Catholic priest who seemed much taken with Dame Edna's young Asian male pianist despite his correctional ankle bracelet sounding an alarm. According to Les, Gerard is a "card carrying member of the Vagina Deniers Club ".

Maria Venuti

The late Sandy Stone gave a final discourse about his life on Earth before ascending to the heavens in his armchair to the sounds of My Blue Heaven.

Dame Edna's manager Barry Humphries & Lizzie Spender

And then it was time for the grand Dame herself, arriving on an elephant with a decidedly Indian theme. Apparently Dame Edna's manager Barry Humphries has signed Edna to a long Bollywood film contract after mistakenly believing he was signing a Hollywood film contract.

artist John Olsen

Bruce Beresford

This was a night with Dame Edna at her best and those in the 'ashtrays' and upstairs circle were invited to "cling on like fruit bats" with the star promising to glance at them occasionally in direct proportion to their ticket prices. We heard the latest on her children, the dress designer Kenny and her daughter Val Mai with her numerous piercings who is in show biz as well, performing at the women's only Clit Clat Club in Marrickville.

Various hapless audience members were grilled as to their bedroom decor and few were spared Edna's pithy comments. The finale was as expected, with every audience member, stomachs aching from laughter provided with their own gladioli and a standing ovation to wish the Dame farewell.
And a final appearance from Barry Humphries with thanks to the audience and a hope that they would all attend the next farewell tour.

As for Dame Edna's future plans-she's been telling a UK newspaper that a biographical film of her life is in the planning :"little Carey Mulligan will be playing me, Helen Mirren will play my grandmother and that dear little Judy Dench will be my bridesmaid Madge".
It's just the beginning of Dame Edna's world tour and at 78 years of age could be her last. Run don't walk and get tickets now wherever you are. They're going like hotcakes and it's a seriously funny night of laughs.

Dame Edna Everage is Pregnant !

B & W president Susan Diver with Dame Edna

That's the stunning disclosure Dame Edna Everage revealed yesterday at the Black & White Charity's Women of Achievement lunch at the Four Seasons Hotel in Sydney.

Mrs Barry Humphries-Lizzie Spender

The Dame was in top form as she gave the audience some unique insights into her life and made some other stunning revelations.

We heard about her daughter who has shacked up with another female, her son who is a fashion designer and has a very close male 'friend' and for the first time Dame Edna told us of the daughter she had named Lois whom she has never spoken of before.

a big favourite-Governor Marie Bashir (left) arrives

Before she was famous Edna and her husband Norm went on a holiday by the sea. They left Lois in a cot on the veranda of their holiday home and forgot about her. In the morning they discovered that Lois had disappeared and the awful truth soon became clear. Lois had been stolen by a rogue giant Koala and was never seen again.
 And on and on it went with an audience of 600 in stitches.

One poor elderly lady came in for the Edna treatment when she was  asked where she was from and replied that she had come for a day out from a retirement home just to see Dame Edna. Edna asked if her security guards were close by.

B & W regulars : Baron & Baroness Boyd

Sadly copyright restrictions prevent us from posting the film we made of Dame Edna's talk today-the show was filmed for a Qantas in flight film. So you need to take an international flight to see her and that may be difficult at present as flights have been cancelled yet again due to ash cloud from the Chilean volcano.

 And the Dame saved the Shuttle from mistakenly purchasing a very expensive rug when we waved to a friend during an auction and it was accepted as a $2800 bid for a floor rug. She bid $2850 and saved the day !. One bidder also paid $6000 for the chance to dine with Edna at the restaurant of their choice.

An amusing moment: as Dame Edna posed on the grand staircase of the Four Seasons to record an introduction for the Qantas film surrounded by helpers and a film crew, an American tourist asked the Shuttle "is that Julia Gillard ?".