Dennis Heymer (l) and Frankie Howerd The gay partner of celebrated British comedian Frankie Howerd has died, leaving a multi-million pound estate to the pair's unofficially adopted son. Howerd, one of the greatest of British comedians who got his start at the famous Windmill theatre and successfully made the transition from stage to TV and movies, lived with Dennis Heymer since the pair met in 1955. Howerd and Heymer subsequently unofficially adopted teenager Chris Byrne who is now 42. Howerd died in 1992. Heymer, 80, had been Howerd's business manager as well as life partner, and was president of the Frankie Howerd OBE Trust and an advisor to a number of other charitable trusts. He died in Byrne's arms. "I always told him he would never go into a nursing home," said Byrne, who entered into a legal civil partnership with Heymer last month in order to protect his inheritance.
Credit: GayNZ.com Daily News staff
First published: Tuesday, 19th May 2009 - 11:29pm