Kiwi actor and comedian David McPhail died overnight in his sleep, his son has confirmed.
The 76-year-old was described by his son Matt McPhail in Facebook post this morning as "a truly beautiful man".
"It is with the deepest sadness that I share with you the news that our wonderful husband, father and grandfather David McPhail died in his sleep last night," he wrote.
"He leaves a great big hole in our lives but not in our hearts."
McPhail's career included impersonations of well-known names, including singer Tina Turner and political figures including Roger Douglas and former prime minister Sir Robert Muldoon.
The Christchurch-born personality grew in popularity in the 1970s with his comedy show A Week of It.
But most people would recognise McPhail from his long-running work with the late Jon Gadsby in McPhail and Gadsby and Issues.
According to his NZ On Screen profile, McPhail collected a wide range of awards throughout his career between 1978 and 2008, when he was awarded an Officer of the New Zealand Order of Merit.
He also had a Queen's Service Medal from 1995 and a collection of Feltex Awards for his work in entertainment.
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