Patti Newton's wishes for Bert's state funeral
New details have emerged for the planned state funeral to honour the late TV legend Bert Newtown, who died on Saturday.
His widow Patti met with representatives from the Victorian Premier's office on Monday to discuss the arrangements, as she is determined to add a dash of show business.
The funeral is expected to be held at St Patrick's Cathedral in Melbourne next week, and will be live-streamed rather than televised.
A close family friend to the Newton's and entertainment journalist Peter Ford expects a formal announcement to be made by the end of the week.
“What Patti was very determined to do was to try and find that middle ground between it being a religious service, a mass, but also have the show business element as well,” he said.
Bert and Patti's son Matt won't be attending the funeral, as logistics of Covid travel plans were interfering with him returning to Australia for the service.
Tributes for the showbiz icon have been pouring in since his death was confirmed on Saturday, with many describing him as a giant of the entertainment industry.
Newton had been battling complications since surgery to have his leg amputated in May and is survived by his wife Patti, children Lauren and Matthew and extended family.
The news was confirmed on Saturday night by Peter Ford on behalf of the grieving family.
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