Who was Barry Humphries?
Barry Humphries was an Australian comedian, actor and writer best known for creating the character Dame Edna Everage, a flamboyant housewife superstar from Moonee Ponds. He died in 2023.
Humphries was born in Melbourne in 1934. He began performing in the 1950s, creating Edna Everage as a parody of suburban Melbourne housewives.
Over the decades, Edna evolved into Dame Edna, a glamorous and outrageous superstar with lilac hair and sparkling glasses who greeted audiences with Hello, possums.
Other characters
Humphries also created Sir Les Patterson, a crude and drunken cultural attaché, and Sandy Stone, a gentle elderly man. His characters satirized Australian culture and society.
He moved to London in the 1960s and found success on stage and television in Britain and the United States. His shows, such as The Dame Edna Experience, were hugely popular.
Humphries also co-founded the Melbourne International Comedy Festival, and its top award, the Barry Award, was named after him until it was renamed in 2024. He received many honors, including a CBE and an AO.
He continued performing well into his eighties.