Rolf Harris is ‘very sick and unwell’, a private investigator and author has revealed to MailOnline.
The disgraced TV star, 93, has been struggling to talk or eat and has been living as a near-recluse at his £5million home in Berkshire since he was freed from jail in 2017 for a string of sex offences.
But who is Rolf Harris? How did Rolf Harris become famous? Who is his wife Alwen Hughes? Did they have any children together?
Read on below for everything you need to know about Rolf Harris.
Rolf Harris and his wife Alwen Hughes have been married since 1958
Who is Alwen Hughes?
Alwen Hughes was born on December 26, 1931 in north London, before growing up in Wales.
A jeweller and sculptor, she met Harris when the pair were studying at art school.
They would go on to marry in 1958, where she allegedly made the decision to have a poodle as her bridesmaid.
Now aged 91, Alwen is in a wheelchair and has been seriously ill with Alzheimer’s disease.
Her husband has not spoken publicly since his release from jail in 2017 but released a statement in the book Rolf Harris: The Defence Team’s Special Investigator Reveals the Truth Behind the Trials by William Merritt.
‘I understand we live in the post truth era and know few will want to know what really happened during the three criminal trials I faced – it’s easier to condemn me and liken me to people like Saville and Glitter,’ Harris said.
‘I was convicted of offences I did not commit in my first trial. That is not just my view but the view of the Court of Appeal who overturned one of my convictions. I had already served the prison sentence by the time of the appeal.
‘I changed my legal team after the first trial, and I was told that if the truth was out there, William (Merritt) would find it and he did.
His wife Alwen, 91, a jeweller and sculptor, is in a wheelchair because of Alzheimer’s disease but the couple, who married in 1958 and have one child, live together with the help of around the clock care
‘The evidence he found proved my innocence to two subsequent juries.
‘I’d be in prison serving a sentence for crimes I did not commit if it were not for William’s investigation.
‘It is difficult to put into words the injustice that I feel.’
Does Rolf Harris have children?
Harris and Hughes have one child, a daughter named Bindi, who was born 10 March 1964.
Bindi dropped out of art school aged 16, going on to work at shops such as Miss Selfridge, as well as a stint at a hairdresser’s salon. At 21, she enrolled at Bristol University to study fine art.
After graduating, Bindi began a relationship with Malcolm Cox, a struggling artist. The pair had a son, Marlon, who was born in 1996. After splitting up with Cox, she would go on to marry fellow artist Craig Nicholls in 2008.
When it came to her career, Bindi Harris decided to pursue similar exploits to those which her father found his success in, as she became an abstract artist.
Rolf Harris is pictured with his daughter Bindi in 1995. She would also go on to become an abstract artist
Despite living in the shadow of her father, Bindi attended art school and would go on to exhibit her pieces at a number of different galleries.
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She was unsettled by the chemistry between Rolf and Andrea Kingston, a family friend who had moved into a converted boathouse on the property.
Bindi confided in her friend, who reacted by saying: ‘What on earth does he see in her? How dare he? Your Dad is a right b******.’
Shocked, Bindi asked her friend if Harris had ever touched her, to which she replied that he had abused her for more than 16 years.
The revelation caused Bindi such pain that she destroyed some of Harris’s paintings but she remained in touch with him.
Rolf Harris (pictured arriving at Southwark Crown Court with daughter Bindi and niece Jenny in 2014) was found guilty on 12 counts of indecent assault
Is Rolf Harris still alive?
After serving three of his five year and nine month long sentence, Harris was released from jail on 19 May 2017. Harris celebrated his 93rd birthday on 30 March 2023.
Since being released from jail, Harris has resided in his hometown of Bray, Berkshire.
The Harris family solicitor lawyer Daniel Burke told MailOnline he has had no contact with the immediate family.
He said he had not spoken to Rolf’s only daughter Bindi and had no instructions to prepare or issue statement concerning his failing health.
Mr Merritt told MailOnline he saw Harris in late 2022, and that the disgraced Australian was gravely ill.
He said: ‘Rolf has been very sick. When I saw him he was able to speak to me. He was with it, but he was obviously unwell’.
Mr Merritt said Rolf has had neck cancer and there have been serious concerns about his health, although he was ‘getting on with things’. Due to the cancer, Rolf is said to ‘gurgle’ when talking and is hard to understand.
Rolf Harris (pictured during the pandemic) can no longer talk or eat and requires around the clock care after being diagnosed with neck cancer
Who is Rolf Harris?
Born in Australia, Rolf Harris found fame as an entertainer and become notable for his use of different instruments, such as the didgeridoo, to enliven his performances.
He was also known for appearing on television, as well as his artistic works as a painter, alongside the release of 30 studio albums throughout his musical career.
His single ‘Tie Me Down Kangaroo, Sport’ reached number one in Australia in 1960, whilst ‘Two Little Boys’ earnt top spot in the charts in the UK and Ireland in 1969.
Credited with the invention of the wobble board, Harris used the instrument to great success in his cover of Led Zeppelin’s ‘Stairway to Heaven’, which broke into the top ten of the UK charts in 1993.
Rolf Harris is pictured here with a dog at the RSPCA Animal Hospital in Putney, London
What did Rolf Harris do?
In March 2013, as part of the British police investigation into sexual abuse allegations known as Operation Yewtree, Harris was one of 12 people arrested for questioning regarding historical allegations of sex offences.
The allegations were not linked to the offences committed by Jimmy Saville, with Harris maintaining his innocence at the time and was subsequently bailed without charge.
However, in August 2013, he was arrested again as part of the operation, and was found guilty of nine counts of indecent assault during the 1980s.
After undergoing a lengthy trial at Southwark Crown Court in 2014, Harris was convicted of 12 counts of indecent assault and sentenced to five years in prison.
Harris served his sentence at HM Prison Stafford.
