COMEDIAN Jon Kenny was remembered as “remarkable” and compassionate during an emotional funeral service today.
The Limerick man’s family revealed the entertainer died in hospital in Galway on Friday surrounded by his relatives, a week after suffering a cardiac arrest.
Jon was best known for being one half of the d’Unbelievables with Pat Shortt and for his cameos on Father Ted.
He also recently had a small role in the Oscar-winning movie The Banshees of Inisherin.
Mourners gathered in his hometown to say their final goodbyes to the late comedian, including President Michael D Higgins and Taoiseach Simon Harris represented at the funeral by their aides-de-camp, and D’Unbelievables partner Pat Shortt, and a number of well-known comedians.
On Tuesday, his funeral service heard how Jon’s “compassion for his characters was the hallmark of his work”.
The priest also shared a clip of Jon performing on RTE’s The Late Late Show back in the late 80s, in hopes of showing the “larger than life” man that Jon was.
As the gifts were brought to the alter, among them were a guitar and poetry book to represent Jon’s love of the crafts, a Munster rugby and Limerick flag, and one of his many wigs from over the years, something which gave the congregation a much-needed giggle.
Unlike a standard funeral service, St Patrick’s Church in Lough Gur, Bruff, was filled with traditional Irish music throughout, from start to finish.
Giving Jon the send-off he would’ve wanted, The Mary Wallopers and Sharon Shannon played traditional tunes through the communion service, almost acting as a mini concert due to the amount of people attending.
Lifting the mood during the eulogy, broadcaster John Creedon shared some more light hearted anecdotes about his good pal.
He said: “To say he was a remarkable man would be a massive understatement, the Irish word laoch, meaning warrior, crossed my mind a few times over the last few days.
“He came into life charging, good days as well as bad days, he battled on gamely.
“He was always Jon, he was never anything other than Jon and the show always went on.”
‘HE BROUGHT COMPASSION’
He reminisced on a story of the two travelling to Prague, Czech Republic to see Cork City in an away game, where the comedy legend brought nothing but a jockey hat he found in his car boot on a four day trip – which he insisted on wearing for the entire flight.
Speaking about his comedy career, John said his good friend had a “marvellous gift” in a very “noble trade”.
He said: “Jon, he sprinkled that laughing dust everywhere he went.
“They always say the clown is the most sensitive person in the circus, that’s true, Jon had sensitivity.
“He brought compassion to all of his characters, in truth, Jon Kenny had compassion for all of us.
“It was that genuine depth of love and compassion for people that informed those remarkable performances and that remarkable life.”
Thanking his family for “sharing Jon” with the rest of the world, he reminded them how Jon would always be talking about them.
He added: “You know full well how much he absolutely worshipped you.”
FRANCE TRIP
Mourners also heard of how d’Unbelievables star enjoyed the best three months of his life holidaying in France before his passing.
John revealed how the Limerick man had spent the last three months of his life in France with his beloved wife Margie as he battled illness.
John told mourners: “I asked Jon if going to France was a good idea and he said sure it’s 20 degrees over there in October. He ended up having the best three months of his life. We only wished he could have enjoyed more of it.”
The RTE star revealed how Jon had been excitedly workshopping a brand new stage show which featured his own poetry and prose, a world away from his work with D’Unbelieveables or acclaimed stage work.
John said: “He texted me ‘I’m definitely on the road to somewhere with these poems. I want to make a world the audience can enter with me. It’s not stand up and it’s not a play. I don’t know what it is but I will when I find it’”.
His pal added that Jon didn’t need to find anything as he “never lost it, entertaining millions around the world.”
The RTE host also spoke of his hope that Jon’s poetry would now be published posthumously.
John said: “It absolutely must be published.”
‘HE ADORED PEOPLE’
Jon’s wife Margy also shared some words of thanks to those who stood by her husband and her family during the recent harder times.
She said: “I just want to say a big thank you to everybody who has come here today, everybody who turned up last night and in the last few days.
“It’s just kind of overwhelming, the outpouring of love for Jon that we felt everywhere and today, I feel it here so strong.
“Jon just loved people, he adored people. I was amazed by the fantastic time he had with everybody.”
CANCER DIAGNOSIS
Jon, 57, was diagnosed with Non-Hodgkin lymphoma in 2000 and it returned in 2020.
In March, he opened up about his first cancer diagnosis during the success of d’Unbelievables.
Speaking to Oliver Callan on RTE Radio 1, he said: “It was tiring and wearing, but it was fun, and well, I nearly killed myself.
“I got cancer at the beginning of 2000 and I had no choice but to take a step back.
“Over the space of two years I was on different forms of treatment.”
Jon was diagnosed with Non-Hodgkin lymphoma in his early 40s but through extensive chemotherapy treatment he came out the other side.
He added: “I got a stem cell transplant, thanks be to God, they sorted me out and I motored on for another while.
“My cancer came back then about three or four years ago.
“I had an operation to remove my left lung and that was grand.”
