Popular comedian and TV presenter Paul O'Grady took to Instagram recently to share a series of throwback snaps of his days performing as drag queen Lily Savage.
The star, who lives in Aldington, has graced our TV screens for more than 30 years now and whilst he has long dropped the drag act, Lily Savage is fondly remembered by many.
Paul O'Grady made his first TV appearance in 1988 playing the character of a transvestite prostitute informant, Roxanne, in three episodes of ITV's police drama The Bill.
Read more: Paul O'Grady's little known husband who's a star in his own right
He gained public exposure as Lily Savage on the late-night Channel 4 comedy show Viva Cabaret! which led to a role as presenter on the Channel 4 morning television program The Big Breakfast.
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He had his big break as the host of BBC's Blankety Blankety in 1998 and in 2004 he was given his own show, The Paul O'Grady Show, which ran for seven years.
Since then Paul has dedicated much of his time to working with animals, including on the hit ITV documentary Paul O'Grady: For the Love of Dogs.
But outside the world of showbiz, Paul leads a quiet life in Aldington with his huge range of pets and a devoted husband.
Who is Paul O'Grady's husband?
Paul married his husband Andre Portasio in the summer of 2017, but the couple had been dating for some ten years before they tied the knot.
41-year-old Andre Portasio is a professional dancer who used to perform with the National Ballet after graduating from the Royal Academy of Ballet.
Andre performed as a ballet dancer for ten years, featuring in shows such as Swan Lake, The Nutcracker and The Rite of Spring, even earning medals at the Genée in 1998 and 1999, an international ballet competition for aspiring young dancers.
Paul and Andre began dating in the mid-2000s after meeting at a gay club in London called Showplace.
Paul divorced his wife Teresa Fernandes, a Portuguese lesbian who he married in 1977 to stop her being deported.
11 years later the couple tied the knot in a private 30 minute ceremony at the Goring Hotel.
The wedding was attended by Sir Ian McKellen and Aldington neighbour Julian Clary.
Paul and Andre lived together throughout the coronavirus lockdowns, but they normally live seperately.
Why do they live separately?
In an interview with the Irish News, Paul confessed to living separately from his husband and said they were inspired by Helena Bonham Carter and Tim Burton, who famously lived apart throughout their marriage.
He said: "We’re doing a Helena Bonham Carter and Tim whatshisname, and it works a treat.
"It’s the same as before. We see each other all the time.
"We just don’t live together, which for me makes for a perfect relationship because when you’ve had enough, you can say; 'I’ll see you, I’m off'
"I’m a bit cranky of a morning. I’m a cobra. I don’t get up, I’m exhumed, and I slither down the stairs looking for trouble. But otherwise I’m fine. Andre’s pristine, you know, everything’s tidy – and I’m not."
Paul is adamant that the key to a successful marriage is having seperate bedrooms.
He added: "Separate bedrooms also work a treat - I don't like sharing a bed.
“What if I want to read? I also have to listen to the shipping forecast before I sleep."
Instead, Paul shares his expansive Kent home with his entourage of animals.
Life with his animals in Aldington
Paul lives on a stunning farm in the village of Aldington, near Ashford.
The property is the perfect setting to house his cats, New Zealand pigs, ducks, geese, donkeys, sheep, ferrets, goats and of course dogs.
It seems like animals are a little too comfortable around Paul however, which he found out when he discovered a cow in his kitchen.
Talking to Eammon and Ruth Holmes on ITV's This Morning, Paul said: "I was in the downstairs loo having a nice read, a bit of peace, I can sit there for hours.
"The dogs were going crazy in the end I got up and shuffled through with pants around my ankles and here's Dot, my cow, in the kitchen
"She was eating a bit of yellow fish from the night before in the sink. I said, how am I going to get her out?
"So I open the fridge thinking I'd get a bit of lettuce, that might lure her.
"So she puts her head in the fridge, wrecks it, lifts her tail and wees all over the place. Highly excited... it was like a firehose!
"My trousers around my ankles are sodding so I kick them off.
"Eventually, I get her out with a tub of parsley and I'm going down the garden and thinking, I hope nobody walks in now as I'm naked from the waist down with a cow."
The incident certainly didn't put him off animals however as he often shares pictures and videos of them on his Instagram page.
His most recent post shows a family of ducklings who have taken residence with his pigs, and a photo from May depicts Paul proudly holding a new-born lamb 15 minutes after his birth on his farm.
Paul seems quite content splitting his life between his husband Andre, his huge collection of animals in Kent, and his slightly more glamorous TV life.
His new ITV chat show Paul O'Grady's Saturday Night Line-Up is due to air later this year.