British comic much-loved

Entertainer Paul O’Grady, who achieved fame as drag queen Lily Savage before becoming a much-loved comedian and host on British television, has died. He was 67.

Born in Birkenhead, near Liverpool, in 1955, O’Grady was a local authority care worker when he began performing as Savage, a tart-tongued Liverpudlian drag queen.

Savage became a fixture as a standup and talent-show host at London’s Royal Vauxhall Tavern, a landmark gay venue. Lily Savage moved into television in the 1990s, including a stint hosting talk show “The Lily Savage Show.”