Ken Dodd cancels Newtown show over illness
Veteran comic Sir Ken Dodd has been forced to cancel an appearance in Mid Wales after being taken ill.
Sir Ken was due at the Hafren Theatre in Newtown on Saturday.
But he is suffering from a severe chest infection and is in hospital in his home city of Liverpool, with his wife Anne by his bedside.
The 90-year-old was taken to hospital by ambulance last Friday and his forthcoming appearances have been cancelled..
His spokesman, Robert Holmes, said: “He’s getting the best possible treatment and he’s full of praise for that.
“He’s in an NHS hospital and couldn’t be getting better treatment.”
He said: “Ken’s always very positive. At the moment he’s not as well as he normally is. But I speak to Anne every day and she’s there giving him all the help and encouragement he needs.
“He’s one of the most sprightly 90-year-olds I’ll ever know.
“He does have a chest infection and is being monitored for that. He’s on antibiotics and, God willing, he will be fit and well again soon. I was told that flu has been ruled out.
“He’s always had chest problems and is a little bit asthmatic. They are just checking that there are no infections. At this time of year there is a lot of it about.
“There are so many people at his gigs. It’s like being on an aeroplane.”
The star, famed for his “tickling stick”, recently vowed that he would never retire from the stage and a career which has spanned more than seven decades.
Sir Ken was knighted last year in recognition of his services to entertainment and charity.
