Eight months after the death of Australian social satirist, author, artist and comedian Barry Humphries, a state memorial service was held at the Sydney Opera House to celebrate the 89-year-old’s life.

Inside a packed auditorium on December 15, heavyweights of the entertainment industry, politics and the arts gathered to remember the man who gave the world Dame Edna Everage, Sir Les Patterson and Sandy Stone.

He is widely considered the greatest entertainer Australia has ever had.

He had friends from all walks of life, from prime ministers, to kings and media magnates, to colonies of artists and entertainers, and all – either at the time of his death in April, and ever since  – have shared stories of the man from Melbourne’s leafy eastern suburbs in Camberwell.

Humphries was married four times, put the Melbourne suburb of Moonee Ponds on the map and made Barry McKenzie a household name after the beer-drinking young larrikin conquered London in the 1970s.

He controversially had his name stripped from the Melbourne International Comedy Festival’s main award in 2019 over comments he made about the transgender community, and was posthumously awarded Australia’s highest honour in a King’s Birthday honours list.

In a career spanning almost seven decades Humphries reduced audiences to tears of laughter at theatres and on television around the world: “Tragedy dampens the spirits,” he once said.

“Comedy dampens the upholstery.”

His death was one of many Australians farewelled in style this year, while Hollywood paid tribute to dozens of TV and screen legends no longer with us.

Australians farewelled

Tributes from fellow chefs, restaurant owners and celebrities around the world flowed after the shock death of MasterChef Australia judge Jock Zonfrillo on May 1.

The Scottish-born, Melbourne-based chef, and the presenter’s co-hosts Andy Allen and Melissa Leong joined so many who were shocked at his sudden death at age 46.

Zonfrillo was the owner of award-winning fine-dining Restaurant Orana on Adelaide’s Rundle Street. It operated from 2013 until 2020.

The popular TV personality had left behind several unfinished and completed projects, including a fashion range and TV show filmed in Italy.

Singer Jimmy Barnes, who considered Zonfrillo “like a brother”, performed Amazing Grace at his May 13 service with daughter Mahalia.

He leaves behind wife, Lauren Fried, and four children.

The entertainment world was again in shock after Melbourne-based comedian Cal Wilson, 53, died suddenly from a “rare and aggressive form of cancer” in October.

She was in hospital for four weeks leading up to her death, leaving behind husband Chris and teenage son, Digby.

Wilson was well known for her work in NZ and Australia. She also appeared on the ABC’s Spicks and Specks, Good News Week, Would I Lie to You? and had her own Netflix comedy special.

She appeared at the Melbourne Comedy Festival 14 times and was a member of its board.

Much mourned

Described as a “Titan” of the art world, John Olsen was known for his distinctive depictions of landscapes and nature, died at age 95 on April 11.

And one of Australia’s most renowned vocalists Renee Geyer died at the age of 69 following complications from hip surgery in January.

The famous husky-voiced songstress was dubbed the First Lady of Soul and had a number of chart hits in the 1970s and ’80s.

The last week of 2023 also brought the sad and unexpected passing of chef Bill Granger.

The London-based Granger died peacefully in hospital on Christmas Day, with his wife Natalie Elliott and three daughters at his bedside.

Born in Melbourne, Australia, Bill was a self-taught cook who became a celebrated global restaurateur and food writer with a career spanning over 30 years.

Vale TV and screen legends

Hollywood lost dozens of talented television and film stars in 2023, with the death of Friends‘ star Matthew Perry among the most high-profile actors.

Perry, 54, was found dead in a hot tub at his home in Los Angeles on October 28 after Los Angeles emergency services rushed to a call over a cardiac arrest.

Perry received one Emmy nomination for his Friends role and two more for appearances as an associate White House counsel on The West Wing.

He also had several notable film roles, starring opposite Salma Hayek in the rom-com Fools Rush In and opposite Bruce Willis in the the crime comedy The Whole Nine Yards.

In recent years, Perry had begun to open up about his health battles, which ranged from pancreatitis to alcohol and opioid addiction.

He documented his struggle with addiction and an intense desire to please audiences in his memoir, Friends, Lovers and the Big Terrible Thing.

Irish actor Sir Michael Gambon (The King’s Speech, the Harry Potter franchise) died at 83 after a career spanning six decades, David ‘Duckie’ McCallum (NSIC, The Great Escape, The Man From U.N.C.L.E) was 90, while 1960s child actress who played Wednesday in The Addams Family, Lisa Loring, died aged 63, after a stroke possibly caused by smoking and hypertension.

Veteran broadcaster Sir Michael Parkinson, who was considered the king of British chat shows, suffered a brief illness before his passing aged 88 on August 16.

Among his most famous interviews included Sir Tony Blair and Muhammad Ali (twice).

His death certificate, which was registered at the Maidenhead Town Hall, shows he died of “frailty of old age”, according to the Express.

The certificate was registered on August 18 by the star’s son Michael.

In 2013, Sir Michael spoke openly about being diagnosed with prostate cancer following a routine health check. He was given the all-clear eight years ago.

Announcing his death last month, the TV legend’s family said he had died “after a brief illness … in the company of his family”.

One-time mayor and news anchor Jerry Springer, whose namesake TV show featured a circus of dysfunctional families willing to bare all, died aged 79.

Known for chair-throwing and expletive-filled arguments, The Jerry Springer Show was a favourite guilty pleasure over its 27-year run, at one point topping even topping Oprah Winfrey’s ratings.

Piper Laurie (The Hustle, Carrie, Children of a Lesser God), Alan Arkin, Angus Cloud (Euphoria) and Room With a View actor Julian Sands – whose remains were found months after he vanished on a mountain hike in Southern California – also passed away.

Suzanne Shepherd passed away on November 17, aged 89. She was best known for her roles in The Sopranos and Goodfellas.

The music industry mourned its trailblazers

Tony Bennett, Tina Turner and Lisa Marie Presley were among the biggest names in the music industry to lose their lives this year.

Bennett, who more recently paired with Lady Gaga for a series of intimate concerts, suffered from Alzheimer’s disease for four years before his death on July 21, aged 96.

No less than Frank Sinatra called the former singing waiter “the best singer in the business” after he became a star in the 1950s. Bennett went on to win 20 Grammy awards, including a lifetime achievement award.

“Our relationship was very real. Sure he taught me about music, about showbiz life, but he also showed me how to keep my spirits high and my head screwed on straight … I’ve been grieving the loss of Tony for a long time. We had a very long and powerful goodbye,” wrote Gaga.

Shane MacGowan, the London-Irish punk who transformed Irish traditional music with The Pogues and penned some of the most haunting ballads of the 1980s before sinking into alcohol and drug addiction, died aged 65 on November 30.

He joined Andy Rourke from The Smiths, Sinead O’Connor and guitar god Jeff Beck as iconic artists who made life-long impressions and influence on the music scene.

The hearse carrying O’Connor’s body was surrounded by emotional fans as it made its way to the funeral ceremony in her home town of Bray on July 26. She was 56 years old and brought solace to the Irish and to people all over the world for her ballads.

Lisa Marie Presley died from complications following bariatric surgery she had several years earlier. The January 12 death at age 54 of the singer, songwriter and heir of Elvis Presley was ruled as being from natural causes due to effects of a small bowel obstruction.

Music legend Tina Turner, who “enchanted millions” with enduring hits such as (Simply) The Best and What’s Love Got to Do With It?, died aged 83.

The Grammy-winning singer died peacefully at home in Switzerland after a long illness on May 24.

Turner had suffered ill health in recent years. She was diagnosed with intestinal cancer in 2016 and underwent a kidney transplant in 2017.

Musicians Jeff Beck, 78, Jimmy Buffett, 76, composer Burt Bacharach, 94, and singer and 96-year-old singer and actor Harry Belafonte were also mourned for their incredible life-long contributions music.

Special mentions go to composer, Ryuichi Sakamoto, 71,  singers Jane Birkin, 76, and Glenda Jackson, 87, and musicians Tom Verlaine, 76 and David Crosby, of Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young, died aged 81.

Stars behind some iconic movies

Whether they were behind the camera, directing, or made appearances in some memorable Hollywood films and TV shows, Hollywood paid tribute to stars including Pee-wee Herman, Paul Reubens, and directors Terence Davies and William Friedkin.

Improvisational comedian and stage actor, Reubens died from cancer on July 30 at the age of 70.

He was best known for playing Herman, whose beloved character Pee-wee “delighted generations of children and adults with his positivity, whimsy and belief in the importance of kindness”, read a statement issued by his long-time rep.

“Paul bravely and privately fought cancer for years with his trademark tenacity and wit. A gifted and prolific talent, he will forever live in the comedy pantheon and in our hearts as a treasured friend and man of remarkable character and generosity of spirit,” she added.

The 1960s screen goddess Raquel Welch suffered a cardiac arrest after living with Alzheimer’s disease, which contributed to her death at age 82 on April 4.

At the time of Welch’s death in February, her agent Stephen LaManna said she had died peacefully after a “brief illness” but the details were not publicly shared.

Welch first came to prominence in a skimpy, furry bikini in the film One Million Years B.C. which propelled her to international sex symbol status throughout the 1960s and ’70s. Her curves and beauty captured pop culture attention, with Playboy crowning her the “most desired woman” of the 1970s, despite never being completely naked in the magazine.

In 2013, she graced the No.2 spot on Men’s Health’s Hottest Women of All Time list. Her last film was How to Be a Latin Lover in 2017.

Reese Witherspoon, who acted alongside Welch when she made a cameo appearance in romcom Legally Blonde in 2001, was among those who paid tributes.

American actor and musician Lance Reddick, best known for his involvement in the action-packed John Wick franchise, died on March 17 at the age of 60 from heart disease.

Troubled actor, Saving Private Ryan‘s Tom Sizemore died in February aged 61 from heart failure caused by a brain aneurysm.

Richard ‘Munch‘ Belzer, who played NYPD detective John Munch for 23 years in the NBC police drama series Homicide: Life on the Street, Law & Order: Special Victims Unit, died on February 19 aged 78.

He joined Italian actor Gina Lollobrigida, who achieved international film stardom during the 1950s and was dubbed “the most beautiful woman in the world” after the title of one of her movies. She died in Rome, her agent said, at the age of 95.

Fashion designer Mary Quant, authors Cormac McCarthy and Martin Amis and designer Paco Rabanne also lost their lives.