Lenny Henry net worth revealed after comedian's 60th birthday

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Lenny Henry was back on television last night, proving that even at age of 60, one of the UK’s most loved comedians has the ability to make an impression on a range of generations.

Known for his Comic Relief campaigns and Premier Inn adverts, Lenny Henry’s life and work was celebrated in a hour-long BBC special, which included clips from TISWAS, The Black and White Minstrel Show in addition to new sketches.

The comedian put his spin on Childish Gambino’s This is America, similar to his past interpretation of Beyonce’s Crazy in Love and he also delivered with his take on Bishop Michael Curry, who gave a sermon at Prince Harry and Meghan Markle’s wedding.

Lenny Henry was back on television last night, proving that even at age 60, he's still got it

Who is Lenny Henry?

Lenny Henry has risen through the ranks to become one of the UK’s greatest comedians after starting out in children’s television and is now known as a significant influence on black-centered comedy and characters, according to his official website.

Born Lenworth George Henry on August 29, 1958 in Dudley in the West Midlands, his first appearance on television was as a comic on New Faces before appearing on TISWAS, the Saturday morning show alongside Chris Tarrant and Bob Carolgees.

Lenny then moved on to work on Three of a Kind, which lasted for three years before producing two successful series of The Lenny Henry Show. In the 1990s, he worked through his own production company, Crucial Films.

His Step Forward workshop for new writers, operated in collaboration with the BBC, resulted in a new series for BBC called The Real McCoy and presented a black perspective through a range of different mediums.

He also became the first British comic to release a live stand-up comedy film, similar to those made by the likes of Steve Martin, Eddie Murphy and Robin Williams. After Lenny Henry Live and Unleashed, he filmed the Touchstone/Disney film True Identity before appearing in Alive and Kicking.

After this, Lenny’s notable appearances included Bernard & the Genie and In Dreams in addition to his South Bank Show Special, Lenny Hunts the Funk. Lenny then went on to star in Chef! and present the documentary New Soul Nation.

Lenny Henry is known for his work for Comic Relief and a number of other charities 

The comedian worked on White Goods, the second series of Chef!, LOUD! and another South Bank Show Special called Darker than Me. Following this tour, he started filming a Christmas special of The Lenny Henry Show, which aired in 1995.

Lenny then starred in a number of documentaries: Lenny’s Big Amazon Adventure and Lenny Henry Goes to Town before completing a sell-out tour of Australia and New Zealand with Lenny Henry Large! He then starred in The Man, Hope & Glory and put on his one-man show, LARGE ‘99.

With many documentaries and comedy show tours under his belt, Lenny’s last live show Where You From? toured throughout the UK, Australian and New Zealand in 2007 and 2008. He has also taken up a number of Shakespearean roles, starting off as Othello and most recently, The Comedy of Errors.

Lenny Henry was married to Dawn French in 1984 and after adopting their daughter Billie and a number of years together, they split amicably, with their divorce being finalised in 2010. He is now in a relationship with Lisa Makin.

A still from The Lenny Henry Birthday Show, where the comedian is seen with Trevor McDonald

Lenny Henry weight

After not having appeared on our screens for a number of years, Lenny Henry shocked fans when he attended a VIP screening of the Unsung Heroines: The Lost World of Female Composers, of which he is the executive producer and sported a much slimmer frame.

In addition to this, following his interview on The One Show, fans took to Twitter to question whether Lenny Henry was ill. One viewer said: ‘Poor Lenny Henry doesn’t look well at all. Hope he’s ok. #theoneshow.’

Another wrote: ‘What's happened to our Lenny he looks seriously ill? #theoneshow.’ A third referenced his Premier Inn adverts, posting: ‘And Lenny has clearly been missing out on those Premier Inn breakfasts! #theoneshow.’

Lenny Henry show

The Lenny Henry Birthday Show celebrated the comedian’s 60th birthday and was on television on August 22, 2018, and is available to watch on iPlayer. It saw Lenny Henry talk about his life with Sir Trevor McDonald and looked back at his career that started 43 years ago.

According to The Sun, Lenny said: ‘It’s fantastic. It’s a real honour. You never imagine you’re going to be 60 when you’re a kid. I started when I was 15 years old, so to be 60 years old and having a commemorative show is a fantastic thing. 

'It was a joy to do and I got to be interviewed by one of my heroes, Sir Trevor McDonald, and to do some silly sketches. It was lovely.’

Lenny Henry net worth

Lenny Henry’s net worth has accumulated to approximately $9 million (£7m), according to Celebrity Net Worth. 

The comedian has made the majority of his money in the entertainment industry, but is known for his work for Comic Relief and it was reported that he would leave his fortune to charity.

As reported in The Mirror in 2015, although he is one of the wealthiest comedians in the country, Lenny will not be leaving his multi-million pound fortune to his daughter in fear that the inheritance would spoil her.

He said: ‘Isn’t there a lot of wealthy people now doing this thing of not giving their children everything? “You’ll start your life with nothing and earn your own money”. 

'There is a thing of not over-privileging your children with stuff if you are very, very rich, because how are they going to learn? How are they going to learn to stick up for themselves. And they are probably right.’