Samuel West 'worried about saying goodbye' as he opens up on parents' death
Channel 5 viewers are set to see Samuel West and Adrian Edmondson head to Somerset in the final instalment of their bird-watching programme.
Samuel West and Anna Madeley speak about show
Actor Samuel West opened up about the death of his parents within minutes of his Channel 5 show.
Sam and Ade Go Birding has kept viewers entertained for the past three weeks as the duo explores some of the UK's most beautiful nature reserves.
While embarking on their final venture to Somerset Levels, people saw Samuel share a heartwarming moment with his friend in the car.
Twiddling his moustache, Samuel shared that he had the facial hair because he had played Malvolio in the Royal Shakespeare Company's (RSC) production of Twelfth Night.
Highlighting that it had been a week since the play ended and he was still keeping the moustache, Samuel replied: "I know, I'm slightly worrying about saying goodbye to him.
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"I've played him twice, once when my dad died and once when my mum died. He got me through a tough year. Is it time to take it off, do you think?"
Adrian offered to take the moustache off before him as he cut the ends off for him right there and then in the car.
In 2024, Samuel's father, Timothy West, died at the age of 90 from a subdural haematoma and extra-axial haemorrhage (bleeding within the skull) following a fall.
Sadly, his mother, Prunella Scales, died a year later in 2025 at the age of 93, following a long, well-documented battle with vascular dementia.
Both of his parents were renowned actors, with his mother best known for playing Sybil Fawlty in Fawlty Towers, while Timothy appeared in various productions both on and off stage.
He earned a BAFTA nomination for his role in Edward the Seventh and also featured in the likes of Coronation Street and EastEnders.
Timothy West was also known for his stage work, portraying roles such as King Lear, Macbeth, and Falstaff.
Speaking about the last conversation he had with his mother on the Channel 5 show, Samuel was overcome with emotion.
As the keen birdwatchers sat in a car waiting for a sighting, Samuel shared: "Since we last met, my mum died. A week ago. Last week we went down to Shaftesbury Avenue to see the West End theatres dim their front of house lights. Which is something which would have astonished and delighted her, but it really floored me."
He added: "The last proper conversation I had with her was when a couple of years ago she said, 'How old am I?' And I said, 'You are 91 now.' And she said, '91? (expletive). It was beautifully timed, beautifully enunciated.
"I mean, we had a few more conversations after that, but that may be the last one I remember."
Sam & Ade Go Birding airs on Channel 5
