Jethro's agent has paid tribute to his "dear friend" after the beloved Westcountry comedian died after contracting Covid-19.
The death of the Cornish funny man, who was 73, was confirmed via social media today (December 15).
Jethro, whose real name was Geoff Rowe, grew to prominence in the 1980s in Devon and Cornwall before breaking through to a national audience in 1990 on the Des O'Connor Show.
READ MORE: Jethro: Beloved South West comedian dies after contracting Covid-19
His long-time agent John Miles, from Somerset, has paid a heartfelt tribute to his friend.
John said: "He was just the funniest guy you could imagine, he was very talented. We had a lot of fun over the years, and also he gave a lot of pleasure to millions of people with his comedy.
"It's just lovely to leave that in his memory."
The pair's relationship dates back more than 40 years, and John helped to book Jethro onto the Des O'Connor show.
He said that when Jethro looked back on his career, "he was very happy" because he "just loved hearing people laugh".
He said: "The secret with Jethro was that everybody loved him. He was very down to earth, and it didn't matter whether he was speaking to Prince Charles or the newspaper boy. Fame never changed him, which was a wonderful thing."
John said that he thinks Jethro would like to be remembered as someone who "brought a lot of happiness to a lot of people," which he "certainly did".
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"I hope people will carry on remembering and carry on talking about his jokes," he said.
A statement was posted to the comedian's Facebook page this morning, confirming he had died after contracting Covid and saying that "our lives will never be the same without him".
The statement said: "It is with tremendous sadness that we announce the passing of the well known and popular Cornish comedian Jethro.
"Tragically Jethro passed away on December 14, 2021, after contracting COVID-19.
"Jethro leaves behind his life partner Jennie, sons Jesse and Lanyon, step daughter Sarah, daughter-in-law Stacey and of course his much loved grandchildren.
"We ask that you respect our privacy at this very sad time and give us all time to grieve.
"We will continue to support each other in the knowledge that our lives will never be the same without him."
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