Patti Newton has shared the heartbreaking final promise she made to her late husband Bert Newton before his death in 2021. Speaking on The Morning Show alongside daughter Lauren ahead of Mother's Day, the 81-year-old recalled the night Bert died and the vow that helped her keep moving forward.
Patti said she spent the day by Bert's side in hospital and left just after 7pm. She received a call at 7:20pm informing her that Bert had taken his last breath. “I drove home, and at twenty past seven, I got a call to say he’s taken his last breath, you’ll have to come back. So I did, but I don’t think he wanted me there,” she said.
After his death, Patti made a promise to continue living for her family. “I made him a promise that I would continue to live on, and with this beautiful daughter of mine and all the grandchildren I had lovely reasons to do that, and that’s what I did,” she said. She credited her children and grandchildren with giving her purpose after losing her husband of nearly five decades.
Patti said she still feels Bert guiding her, believing her post-loss stage roles in Grease and Mary Poppins were somehow sent by him. Despite a recent hip replacement, she is eager to return to the stage. She also reflected on the friendships she formed during Grease in 2024, including with Marcia Hines, who she said “protects me all the time, and checks on me and makes sure I’m OK.”
Ending the interview with humour, Patti said she has had a “wonderful life” and jokingly invited host Larry Emdur to sing at her funeral when the time comes.
