DALE’S PAIN
Dale Winton told pal he’d ‘had enough’ and ‘didn’t like the ageing process’ shortly before his death
DALE Winton told his best pal he hated ageing and admitted he'd "had enough" shortly before his death, it has been revealed.
The popular Supermarket Sweep star, 62, also asked the devastated friend: "Do you think there'd be a turn-out for the funeral?"
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LBC DJ Steve Allen, the presenter's friend of 50 years, said this morning: "He didn't like the ageing process, he hated it.
"He used to say to me 'I've had enough'."
Winton's agent last night confirmed his death after he was found collapsed at a home in the North London suburb of Whetstone.
The cause of death has not yet been confirmed but police are not treating it as suspicious.
Fighting back tears, Allen added: "Yesterday, when I went to bed, I knew Dale Winton. Today, Dale Winton is no more and I can't come to terms with that.
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"I feel better for him now, because I don't think he'd been in a good place for a long, long time.
"I feel happy for him that he's in a place now where he's probably going to be eternally young."
Neighbours this morning told how the star looked unwell in the weeks leading up to his shock death yesterday.
The presenter of Supermarket Sweep had moved from his £2.9m Regent's Park apartment earlier this month and didn't look "quite right" as he left, it was reported.
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Flowers left outside Winton's former home today paid tribute to him as "the kindest man I knew".
Neighbour Iain Grant, 84, said it was clear to see that Winton's health was failing him.
He said: "He moved earlier this month and when I saw him go I realised that his health wasn't quite right, he did not look that great.
"He lived alone as far as I know, there were just a few cleaners who used to come in.
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Take a look at Dale Winton's best bits following his sad death aged 62
"He would always say hello, he had a booming voice, and everyone knew it was Dale."
Other showbiz pals of Dale took to social media to describe their sadness at his loss, with comedian David Walliams writing he was "heartbroken".
Walliams, who featured Dale in comedy series Come Fly With Me, tweeted: "Dale was the best company, always outrageous and hilarious.
"He adored being in showbusiness and loved meeting fans.
"He devoted his life to making everyone else happy, his friends, the public and his godsons, even though he found it hard to be happy himself."
Friend Davina McCall said she was "so so so sad" to hear of his death, calling Dale "a lovely, warm, kind, sensitive, generous soul with a touch of naughty!"
Fellow presenter Julian Clary wrote: "Terribly sad to hear the lovely Dale Winton has died. Kind, sweet, truthful man."
Lisa Armstrong also paid tribute to him, saying: “Absolutely gutted, only saw him last week.
"He was one of life’s true gentlemen, a heart of gold with a wicked sense of humour. RIP lovely man.”
Speaking in one of his final interviews, Dale revealed he had taken time out of the limelight to deal with his health, after being plagued with medical problems.
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He told the in January: "I’ve kept a low profile because I had about four surgeries.
"I had a shoulder problem and a knee problem, so I took a break to get myself sorted.
"It meant I couldn’t exercise, so I’ve been dieting like crazy, but then when I was asked to do this show I thought it would be fun."
Back in 2016, during an appearance on Loose Women, Dale spoke about his secret battle with depression - an illness which had also taken the life of his mum, Sheree, who killed herself just days after Dale's 21st birthday.
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Danny Baker reveals Dale Winton was even more entertaining in private and we never knew the real him
He told the panel: "I should have taken myself off the TV, but I didn't."
"There are worse things in the world, but I had health issues and I had the depression and I didn't realise.
"I always thought 'Get over yourself'... I should have known, my mum died from it."
The star then revealed how his mother took an overdose just days after his 21st birthday, leaving him orphaned after dad Gary died when Dale was only 13, on the day of his bar mitzvah.
He also started to struggle with his mental health after a bad break-up.
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Legendary TV personality Dale was last seen on our TV screens back in February in a Channel 5 show called Dale Winton's Florida Fly Drive.
Fans of the telly legend expressed delight to see him back on screen as he visited Walt Disney World for the first time since the 1970s - but it disappeared from schedules after just one show.
But Channel 5 announced today that the remainder of the show will air in early summer.
He explained: "I had a bad break-up and then I had health issues.
"I would not leave the house.
"Five years, [but] I've totally got through it."
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