Prunella Scales, the star of Fawlty Towers, passed away on Monday at the age of 93, along with All Creatures Great and Small star Samuel West, both of whom remembers their most recent conversation.
Prunella Scales’s son, Samuel West, has opened up about his mum’s final years battling dementia, revealing that their last ‘proper conversation’ took place two years ago. Despite her health decline, she was able to have a chat with Queen Camilla last year, but Samuel noted that her ability to communicate deteriorated significantly afterwards, making it difficult for him to converse with her properly.
Prunella died on Monday at the age of 93, less than a year after the death of her husband, the iconic actor Timothy West, who was 90. She first experienced memory issues in 2001, but it wasn’t until 2012 that she was diagnosed with her specific type of vascular dementia.
Three years ago, the Fawlty Towers legend celebrated her 90th birthday at her home in south-west London by enjoying Sam’s 6,500 birthday greetings.
Her eldest son, who was only two days away from her death, recalled a day when she celebrated her 90th birthday in an interview that was conducted just two weeks before her passing. A lovely poem was written by my brother.
Speaking on the Rosebud podcast with Gyles Brandreth, Sam continued: “I put out a message on Twitter a few days before saying, ‘My mum’s going to be 90, anyone who wants to send her a message I’ll make sure she gets it.’”
“I bound a book of responses that came in at 6,500.” She flicked through the 110-page book, which she enjoyed and wouldn’t recall, of course, now that they have removed everything but the messages.
However, it was actually quite beautiful at the time. How old am I when she asked me a question a few years ago, and we had the last genuine conversation. And I said ‘ You’re 91 mum’. And she said ‘ 91? F*ck. ‘ beautifully timed and beautifully enunciated. Although the conversation we had was not entirely finished, it might well have been the last to have any real significance.
Nevertheless, Gyles disclosed that at a function he organised last year, which Queen Camilla attended, the severity of Prunella’s condition wasn’t apparent to onlookers. The gathering took place in Rye, East Sussex, at E. F. Benson’s former residence – the author behind the Mapp and Lucia tales that were later televised with Prunella featuring in the original adaptation.
Gyles recalled that “Queen Camilla arrived, and what was interesting was that your mother appeared to recognize her.” They undoubtedly had a happy chat and two kisses, and she laughed at the jokes if you hadn’t known.
Sam revealed that despite his mother’s 90-year-old father’s passing last November, she still managed outings and continued to sleep upstairs at home after the addition of a stairlift. Sam’s mother needed round-the-clock care and had lost her actor husband Timothy West.
She explained that she only recently saw my eight-year-old sing at St. James’s Piccadilly, the same church where my father’s memorial was. And the photos I have of them together clearly show how much they both enjoy each other’s company.
She’s never really been angry or anxious, as a dementia sufferer, he continued. She seems to be quite content, which is unusual considering the possibility is that it could be worse. We have been able to purchase medication that stops the disease’s progression for nearly 25 years because of our stable finances.
“My father’s loss of his best friend and her loss of humor are the hardest things,” my father said. They were constantly able to laugh at one another. My parents’ marriage resulted in two significant blessings. They each worked roughly the same amount of time, and they each had the same length of unpaid work.
According to a statement from her sons Samuel and Joseph, the beloved actress passed away “peacefully at home in London” after watching Fawlty Towers the day before her passing.
She continued to live at home, even though dementia forced her to retire from a remarkable acting career that spanned nearly 70 years. Pru and Timothy West were 61 years apart. In November of this year, 2024, he passed away. She is also survived by four great-grandchildren, seven grandchildren, and two stepdaughters.
“We would like to thank everyone who assisted Pru in ensuring that she spent her final days peacefully, lovingly, and surrounded by love.”
This year marked 50 years since the storied comedy show’s debut season, when Fawlty Towers won the Bafta for best scripted comedy in 1976. The late Andrew Sachs played the bumbling Spanish waiter Manuel in the series, and Connie Booth, the show’s maid, played Polly.
