LATE legend Paul O’Grady used sneaky tactics to get dogs adopted, including asking the Queen to adopt a stricken corgi, it has been revealed.
The telly great tried to get the beloved monarch to take a pooch home with her to add to her famous pack when she visited Battersea Dogs & Cats Home.
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Ali Taylor, head of canine behaviour at the organisation, sat down with The Sunday Times to discuss the iconic Lily Savage actor’s relationship with the South West London charity and his many pets.
Ali recalled: “I’ve worked here for 31 years and have known Paul for 11 years through our ITV series, as well as his brilliant work as one of our ambassadors.
“His association with Battersea started before then, with some of our dogs appearing on his chat show so he could try to find them homes.
“Paul became the beating heart of Battersea and showed the nation just how great rescue dogs are, as well as shining a spotlight on all of the work our organisation does.”
The dog expert revealed that Paul had so much love for the often abandoned and abused animals at Battersea that he went to great lengths to find them homes.
This apparently included putting in calls to big-name pals to try and get them to adopt a pup.
Ali recalled: “Those he couldn’t take home with him, he’d try to find a home for.
“He’d always be on his phone to friends. He’d say, ‘I’ve got a plan’.
“Paul had a close relationship with the Royal Family — when the late Queen Elizabeth visited Battersea, he was trying hard to persuade her to take a Corgi home.
“He also had a brilliant relationship with our royal patron, Camilla — she has two Jack Russells from Battersea.”
The Queen Consort recently paid tribute to the star, praising his “infectious humour” and saying she was “deeply saddened”.
Looking back on the times he worked with Paul, Ali had nothing but good things to say.
He remembered the tragically departed star, who died this week aged just 67, as someone who could light up a room and adored his work with animals.
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He said: “He’d arrive looking immaculate and leave covered in dog hair and drool.
“It was hard to get anything finished because we were laughing too much; he’d say something inappropriate and we would get the giggles and the film crew would just have to keep saying ‘Cut! We can’t use that’. He was such a character.”
Ali also told of how the comedy icon cheekily bent the rules, saying: “He decided that he would run the agility course with a Staffie.
“I said beforehand ‘You can’t bring treats in’ — the rules were fairly strict.
“But Paul had a dog biscuit attached to his watch. He was running around the course over all the agility jumps. After that, the Staffie community adored him.
“You can’t put into words the warmth he emitted.”
Discussing Paul’s very sad death, Ali praised him for his work and said he leaves “a strong legacy in many areas”.
He added: “Paul’s death has hit us hard — we’ve cried a lot, but we’re a close family at Battersea and we will get through this together.
“We happened to have an event earlier this week, so we took time to remember Paul. There wasn’t a dry eye in the room.
“I can imagine him now, up there with Cilla [Black] and Barbara Windsor and the Queen. In fact, he’s probably having a ball.”
A tribute fund set up by the charity has already raised over £110,000.
Meanwhile, Paul’s daughter recently broke her silence on the death of her dad, saying: “We’re all devastated.”
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