‘Everyone wants a piece of Barry': Humphries' art hits auction highs
Two years after his death, the creator of Dame Edna and Sir Les Patterson can still pull a crowd and steal a show.
Some 98 objects, mostly packed up from Barry Humphries' Sydney home, went under the hammer on Monday night in an Australian auction of his personal art which exceeded auction house Leonard Joel's most optimistic sale expectations. All up the Australian sale netted $477,112 including buyers' premium.
'He'd be saying, 'I told you I was good!', and he'd be planning an exhibition,' said son Oscar, from London as he watched the auction live.
With his share of the proceeds, Oscar Humphries said he would frame works he held by his father and raised the idea of funding a comedy prize in Melbourne 'for people who are actually funny'.
In 2019, the Melbourne International Comedy Festival stripped Barry Humphries's name from the festival's biggest award, following furore over the performer's comments about transgender people.
'If someone wants to match me we could talk,' said Oscar. 'We could recreate the Barry awards. I'm good for $50,000, but I have got to find a partner.'
The opening lot at the auction was a framed watercolour and pen likeness by Humphries of his comic creation Dame Edna. It signalled the excitable buyer interest that was to come for works by the comic, selling for $17,000 under the hammer or $21,250 with buyers' premium. It had a top estimate before auction of $3000.
Caricatures penned by Humphries while on the road in Australia, the US, Greece and elsewhere fetched several thousand dollars a piece.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
The Advertiser
37 minutes ago
- The Advertiser
Movie giants bring Hollywood stardust to Flying Roos
Australia's ocean dominance has got a Hollywood upgrade as Hugh Jackman and Ryan Reynolds became co-owners of the country's three-times champion SailGP team, now rebranded as the BONDS Flying Roos. The investment adds star power to the Australian outfit who have dominated the global sailing championship, winning a trio of titles in four seasons of the high-speed racing series. "We're incredibly excited to set sail together in this new adventure," Jackman and Reynolds said in a statement. "Hugh brings a deep love for and pride in his home country as well as being an avid fan of sailing." The move comes just days after Oscar winner Anne Hathaway sailed into sports ownership, joining a female-led consortium who acquired the Red Bull Italy SailGP Team in what circuit CEO Russell Coutts called "another significant milestone in SailGP's growth as a league". Founded in 2019, SailGP pits national crews in identical 50ft foiling catamarans reaching speeds over 54 knots within metres of shorelines in iconic harbours worldwide. "This is an incredible milestone for us and for our sport," said Tom Slingsby, who serves as driver, CEO and co-owner of the Flying Roos. SailGP director Andy Thompson added: "Today marks a landmark moment not just for the Australia team, but for the trajectory of SailGP globally," highlighting the "extraordinary combination of global reach, vision, commercial nous" the Hollywood duo bring. The newly minted Flying Roos will debut under their star-studded ownership at the Mubadala New York Sail Grand Prix on June 7-8, where they aim to defend their position atop the championship leaderboard. Australia's ocean dominance has got a Hollywood upgrade as Hugh Jackman and Ryan Reynolds became co-owners of the country's three-times champion SailGP team, now rebranded as the BONDS Flying Roos. The investment adds star power to the Australian outfit who have dominated the global sailing championship, winning a trio of titles in four seasons of the high-speed racing series. "We're incredibly excited to set sail together in this new adventure," Jackman and Reynolds said in a statement. "Hugh brings a deep love for and pride in his home country as well as being an avid fan of sailing." The move comes just days after Oscar winner Anne Hathaway sailed into sports ownership, joining a female-led consortium who acquired the Red Bull Italy SailGP Team in what circuit CEO Russell Coutts called "another significant milestone in SailGP's growth as a league". Founded in 2019, SailGP pits national crews in identical 50ft foiling catamarans reaching speeds over 54 knots within metres of shorelines in iconic harbours worldwide. "This is an incredible milestone for us and for our sport," said Tom Slingsby, who serves as driver, CEO and co-owner of the Flying Roos. SailGP director Andy Thompson added: "Today marks a landmark moment not just for the Australia team, but for the trajectory of SailGP globally," highlighting the "extraordinary combination of global reach, vision, commercial nous" the Hollywood duo bring. The newly minted Flying Roos will debut under their star-studded ownership at the Mubadala New York Sail Grand Prix on June 7-8, where they aim to defend their position atop the championship leaderboard. Australia's ocean dominance has got a Hollywood upgrade as Hugh Jackman and Ryan Reynolds became co-owners of the country's three-times champion SailGP team, now rebranded as the BONDS Flying Roos. The investment adds star power to the Australian outfit who have dominated the global sailing championship, winning a trio of titles in four seasons of the high-speed racing series. "We're incredibly excited to set sail together in this new adventure," Jackman and Reynolds said in a statement. "Hugh brings a deep love for and pride in his home country as well as being an avid fan of sailing." The move comes just days after Oscar winner Anne Hathaway sailed into sports ownership, joining a female-led consortium who acquired the Red Bull Italy SailGP Team in what circuit CEO Russell Coutts called "another significant milestone in SailGP's growth as a league". Founded in 2019, SailGP pits national crews in identical 50ft foiling catamarans reaching speeds over 54 knots within metres of shorelines in iconic harbours worldwide. "This is an incredible milestone for us and for our sport," said Tom Slingsby, who serves as driver, CEO and co-owner of the Flying Roos. SailGP director Andy Thompson added: "Today marks a landmark moment not just for the Australia team, but for the trajectory of SailGP globally," highlighting the "extraordinary combination of global reach, vision, commercial nous" the Hollywood duo bring. The newly minted Flying Roos will debut under their star-studded ownership at the Mubadala New York Sail Grand Prix on June 7-8, where they aim to defend their position atop the championship leaderboard. Australia's ocean dominance has got a Hollywood upgrade as Hugh Jackman and Ryan Reynolds became co-owners of the country's three-times champion SailGP team, now rebranded as the BONDS Flying Roos. The investment adds star power to the Australian outfit who have dominated the global sailing championship, winning a trio of titles in four seasons of the high-speed racing series. "We're incredibly excited to set sail together in this new adventure," Jackman and Reynolds said in a statement. "Hugh brings a deep love for and pride in his home country as well as being an avid fan of sailing." The move comes just days after Oscar winner Anne Hathaway sailed into sports ownership, joining a female-led consortium who acquired the Red Bull Italy SailGP Team in what circuit CEO Russell Coutts called "another significant milestone in SailGP's growth as a league". Founded in 2019, SailGP pits national crews in identical 50ft foiling catamarans reaching speeds over 54 knots within metres of shorelines in iconic harbours worldwide. "This is an incredible milestone for us and for our sport," said Tom Slingsby, who serves as driver, CEO and co-owner of the Flying Roos. SailGP director Andy Thompson added: "Today marks a landmark moment not just for the Australia team, but for the trajectory of SailGP globally," highlighting the "extraordinary combination of global reach, vision, commercial nous" the Hollywood duo bring. The newly minted Flying Roos will debut under their star-studded ownership at the Mubadala New York Sail Grand Prix on June 7-8, where they aim to defend their position atop the championship leaderboard.
Perth Now
3 hours ago
- Perth Now
Halle Berry turned down marriage proposal from Van Hunt
Halle Berry has turned down Van Hunt's marriage proposal. The 58-year-old actress has been dating the 55-year-old singer for five years and while he revealed he already popped the question, Halle - who was previously married to David Justice, Eric Benet and Olivier Martinez - doesn't feel the need to "validate" their love in a formal way. Speaking to Van said: "I put out the proposal, and it's still on hold as you can see. "It's just out there floating. You know, maybe you can encourage her." Halle added: 'Well, I've been married three times. Van has been married once, and so no, we don't feel like we have to get married to validate our love in any way. We don't." However, the Oscar-winning star - who has Nahla, 17, with former boyfriend Gabriel Aubry and Maceo, 11, with Olivier - admitted she thinks she and Van will get married at some point. She said: "I think we will get married just because, out of the people I've been married to, this is the person I should have married. 'And I feel like I should, we should get married, but it's not because we feel like we have to. I think it's something that we would like to do just because we want that expression." And pressed on when they are likely to wed, she said: "Soon". Halle previously hailed meeting Van a "life-changing" experience and noted he was the first person she had fallen "madly in love" with before they slept together. She told Marie Claire magazine: 'It was the first time I was madly in love before I had sex. 'That has never happened to me, ever. Talk about one of those life-changing, beautiful experiences. It was magical, just magical.' And Halle - who met Van through his brother - is convinced she has found the one in the Grammy-winning musician. She said: "It took me a minute to get it right. "The nature of the way this happened, I have a real belief that this is it. This is my person.'
West Australian
3 hours ago
- West Australian
Movie giants bring Hollywood stardust to Flying Roos
Australia's ocean dominance has got a Hollywood upgrade as Hugh Jackman and Ryan Reynolds became co-owners of the country's three-times champion SailGP team, now rebranded as the BONDS Flying Roos. The investment adds star power to the Australian outfit who have dominated the global sailing championship, winning a trio of titles in four seasons of the high-speed racing series. "We're incredibly excited to set sail together in this new adventure," Jackman and Reynolds said in a statement. "Hugh brings a deep love for and pride in his home country as well as being an avid fan of sailing." The move comes just days after Oscar winner Anne Hathaway sailed into sports ownership, joining a female-led consortium who acquired the Red Bull Italy SailGP Team in what circuit CEO Russell Coutts called "another significant milestone in SailGP's growth as a league". Founded in 2019, SailGP pits national crews in identical 50ft foiling catamarans reaching speeds over 54 knots within metres of shorelines in iconic harbours worldwide. "This is an incredible milestone for us and for our sport," said Tom Slingsby, who serves as driver, CEO and co-owner of the Flying Roos. SailGP director Andy Thompson added: "Today marks a landmark moment not just for the Australia team, but for the trajectory of SailGP globally," highlighting the "extraordinary combination of global reach, vision, commercial nous" the Hollywood duo bring. The newly minted Flying Roos will debut under their star-studded ownership at the Mubadala New York Sail Grand Prix on June 7-8, where they aim to defend their position atop the championship leaderboard.
