Tim Minchin has paid tribute to his mother, Ros, after announcing her death while performing a show in Australia.
The comedian, musician and singer shared a photograph on Instagram, simply captioned: “So it goes.”
During his show at the State Theatre in Sydney on Friday as part of his latest tour, An Unfunny Evening With Tim Minchin And His Piano, he told the audience his mother had died the previous day, according to local media in Australia.
Minchin told fans ahead of the encore and said he had wanted the show to go on, before performing one of his most popular songs, White Wine In The Sun.
The track includes the lyrics: “I’ll be seeing my dad, My brother and sisters, my gran and my mum, They’ll be drinking white wine in the sun.”
Minchin, who was brought up in Perth, Western Australia, shared stories about his mum during the show, including her diagnosis with terminal blood cancer in 2020, and played a variety of songs he had written about her, Perth Now reported.
He closed the show with a cover of Leonard Cohen’s Hallelujah, with the audience joining him to sing.
On Monday, as well as his tribute, the star also shared a picture of himself on stage at the State Theatre, saying: “Thank you, Sydney, for a weekend of shows I’ll never forget.”
One of the hundreds of fans who responded to his posts described Friday night’s show as “beautiful”, saying: “None of us will ever forget it. And most of all, much love, strength and support to you and your family at this sad time.
“Your beautiful Mum would be immensely proud of the amazingly talented man she created who was able to touch and connect every single person in that theatre through love, tears and song.”
Read more on Tim Minchin:
Matilda The Musical celebrates 10 years in London
‘We all need to do better at not just screaming at the people we disagree with’
Another fan said Minchin’s second show at the venue on Saturday night was the same. “A night we’ll never forget,” they wrote. “Thanks for sharing yourself with us. Our hearts go out to you and your family.”
“Our hearts went out to you when you spoke about your Mum,” another wrote.
Minchin is currently touring Australia, with shows planned across the country before he ends with eight days in Perth in February and March 2024.
