- Title: Czech government approves state funeral for late singer Karel Gott - PM
- Date: 2nd October 2019
- Summary: PRAGUE, CZECH REPUBLIC (FILE - JULY 2019) (REUTERS) EXTERIOR OF SUPRAPHON SHOP IN PRAGUE MAN ENTERING THE SHOP WITH PHOTOGRAPHS OF GOTT'S FACE WITH 80TH BIRTHDAY SIGNS IN THE WINDOW MAN IN THE SHOP CHOOSING GOTT CD GOTT'S CD'S ON DISPLAY SHOP INTERIOR
- Embargoed: 16th October 2019 16:16
- Keywords: Czech singer Karel Gott Czech singer dies aged 80 Czechoslovakia Czech pop music
- Location: PRAGUE, CZECH REPUBLIC
- City: PRAGUE, CZECH REPUBLIC
- Country: Czech Republic
- Topics: Celebrities,Arts / Culture / Entertainment
- Reuters ID: LVA002AZEOTA1
- Aspect Ratio: 16:9
- Story Text: The Czech government approved a state funeral for singer Karel Gott, who died aged 80 on Tuesday (October 1), Prime Minister Andrej Babis told journalists on Wednesday (October 2).
Gott, who shot to stardom under Communism and remained popular after the 1989 Velvet Revolution, was dubbed the "Sinatra of the East" by the local press while on tour in Germany in 1967.
Babis said the government was seeking approval from Gott's family to hold a state funeral, and that it would be a day of national mourning.
Outside Gott's house in Prague, mourners gathered to lay flowers and candles.
Fifty-nine year-old mourner Ales Strnad said he had first heard Gott's 'Lady Carneval' while visiting his aunt's house during the suppression of the 1968 Prague Spring, inspiring a lifelong love of the song and Gott's music.
Gott's wife, Ivana, announced his death on Wednesday on the singer's official website. Gott had announced in September he was battling acute leukaemia.
(Production: Jiri Skacel, Lewis Macdonald) - Copyright Holder: FILE REUTERS (CAN SELL)
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