IT was 1993 when, as a young reporter covering the north Cotswolds, I was tipped off that Norman Wisdom was staying in the area.

I was told by the newsdesk that he was apparently staying at the Eight Bells in Chipping Campden, Gloucestershire, and they wanted him to try to get an interview with the veteran comedian.

I phoned the hotel, explained who I was and said that I understood Norman Widsom was staying with them.

They said he was and they kindly put me through to his room. Suddenly I heard a little voice say, “Hello!”

I said, “Is that Norman?”. He said, “Yes, but I’m in the bath”.

I then proceeded to conduct the most unusual interview of my journalistic career with someone I had spent hours watching on television and laughing at as a boy.

Norman was absolutely charming. I tried not to picture the scene at the other end of the phone as it may have put me off my shorthand.

London-born Sir Norman died on Monday evening, aged 95, at a nursing home on the Isle of Man. He had sustained a series of strokes over the past few months.

He was loved by millions for his slapstick brand of humour in a career which spanned seven decades.

He starred in 19 films in the 1950s and 1960s, famously playing Norman Pitkin against frustrated boss Mr Grimsdale. He was famous for wearing his trademark flat cap and a tight-fitting suit. Charlie Chaplin described him as his favourite clown.

Sir Norman was also a cult figure in Albania, where his films were the only ones from the West allowed in the country, which he visited in 2001.

Sir Norman was knighted in 2000. His later work included the recurring role of Billy Ingleton in the long-running BBC comedy Last of the Summer Wine.