Bert Newton’s decade-long health battle

Journalist Peter Ford told news.com.au that Patti Newton, Bert’s beloved wife of 46 years, asked him to confirm the sad news on his family’s behalf.

“I have very sad news,” Ford tweeted on Saturday evening.

“Showbiz icon Bert Newton has died at age 83. It was remarkable career on TV, stage & radio. Sadly he didn’t get the last chapter he deserved. He was a great mentor & friend to me. Condolences to Patti, Lauren, Matthew & extended family.”

The veteran performer — affectionately called Moonface — died while undergoing palliative care at a private clinic in Melbourne.

The news comes months after Bert underwent a “life of death” amputation, after enduring a litany of health problems in recent years.

Always open with the public, Bert and his wife of 47 years Patti had kept fans updated about every health setback – and his bouts of illness have hardly slowed him down, with gruelling live theatre appearances in shows like Wicked, Annie and Rocky Horror Picture Show in the past decade.

RELATED: Bert Newton’s incredible TV career

Bouts of pneumonia

Newton spent a week in hospital in 2011 after catching a viral pneumonia from his granddaughter, Eva. The illness took him out of action from his starring role in the stage musical Wicked, but the then-72-year-old said the “wake up call” hadn’t prompted any talk of retirement.

“It’s the old story. What I do I don’t see as a job, I see it as something I love doing and it’s a very important part of my life,” he said upon his release from hospital.

Newton was “rushed to hospital” after suffering another bout of pneumonia in 2017.

Quadruple heart bypass surgery

Newton underwent lifesaving quadruple bypass surgery in November 2012, having been admitted to hospital twice in the prior year.

Leaving hospital weeks after the six-hour surgery, Newton thanked wellwishers for their support and explained he had a long road of rehabilitation ahead.

“Obviously I say thank you. The reaction has been amazing. It’s not the sort of reason you go into the industry that I am in … but it’s such wonderful bonus,” he said as he left the hospital with wife Patti.

“Not just people you know and that have written to you regularly but people you have not heard of before – it’s a wonderful feeling.”

He said his heart issues were only picked up after a check-up when he wasn’t feeling well.

“I was so lucky because I came to hospital for check-up. I wasn’t feeling the person that I normally felt so I came in for a check-up,” he said.

“Don’t be namby pampy, if you don’t feel well get to the doctor. Thank God I was here on time. They saw it, they did it and here I am.”

Mystery hospital stay

In November last year there were fresh fears for Newton’s health in November last year after Patti posted a picture of him in a hospital bed to her Instagram account. But she assured fans he was “all good” despite the hospital stay: “He’s got a lot of living to do.”

A ‘life or death’ amputation

In May came a shocking update on Newton’s health, via entertainment reporter Peter Ford on-air on The Morning Rush with Sean and Kate. An infection that started in Newton’s toe before Christmas 2020 had worsened to the point that doctors gave him a “life or death” ultimatum: Lose your leg, or you may die within months.

Newton reportedly underwent the amputation and faced some big life changes when he returned home to wife Patti.

“It’s a big decision for anyone to make, but it’s also a practical thing, because they live in a two-storey place with the bedrooms and the bathrooms upstairs, so they’re now having to convert the house downstairs because Patti doesn’t want him to go into a nursing home,” said Ford.

Despite the drastic procedure, Ford said the Newton family wanted fans to feel positive about Bert’s outlook when they announced the news.

“They said, ‘We had a choice. Other people don’t have a choice. Bert wants to keep on living, because he adores Patti, his children and his grandkids, and he wants to have as much time as he can with them’,” Ford explained

Originally published as Bert Newton’s decade-long health battle