Petula Clark’s husband Claude Wolff dies at the age of 93 after a short illness. The singer says she is ‘overwhelmed with grief’ – after they stayed married and continued living together despite their divorce in the 1980s

Petula Clark’s husband Claude Wolff has died at the age of 93 after a short illness.

The British singer, 91, announced the news on her social media page on Wednesday, admitting she “couldn’t find the words” to describe how she was feeling.

Petula wrote: ‘Our hearts are heavy. This afternoon Claude, my husband of so many amazing years, passed away, leaving us without words to describe this terrible emotion, sadness.

“Thank you, my dear children and friends, for giving me the strength to get through this overwhelming grief. Peace be with you, Cheri. RIP Claude Wolff (1931-2024).’

Petula’s Facebook post was flooded with messages of condolence in the comments section, as friends and fans sent their condolences to the star.

The actor and producer was known for his work in the film industry, working with his estranged wife on several projects.

Petula and Claude met in the 1950s and remained together for three decades before parting romantically but remaining married until his death.

The former couple met at the Vogue label at a meeting to discuss Petula’s liaison in Paris in 1957, where Claude was “immediately attracted” to Petula.

After the meeting, Petula was told that Claude would work with her if she recorded in French, and she agreed.

They worked together on the 1968 film Petula, in which Claude worked as a producer, and on Here’s Lucy, filmed the same year, where he was an actor.

Petula, who shares three children with Claude, spoke to the Loose Women about their unusual arrangement during a 2016 gig.

She said: ‘We are still married. Claude is the father of our wonderful children.

“We still live together, but he has his own life and I have mine, and somehow it works.”

“These things are hard to talk about in public, but it works.”

From 2012, Petula and Claude lived together in Switzerland. They are parents to their son Patrick, 52, and their two daughters Barbara and Katherine.

Despite her tryst with Claude, Petula found love again, although she admitted it wasn’t a “light bulb” moment like it was with Claude.

She told the Loose Women panel: ‘There’s someone there and it’s very nice and Claude knows about it. There is no secret.’

‘We became friends first and the romantic side came later. I think that’s pretty good too, because it’s not a frantic passion. It’s good to be friends with your husband!’

In 2016, Petula told The Daily Mail of her husband: ‘He’s in Geneva and I’ll see him when I go back. It is funny. Life does these things to us.

‘Of course it’s painful to think that something so wonderful had changed, but he has his life and I have mine. We have three wonderful children together and we love each other very much.

‘It’s just different now. It may not be perfect, but we’ll make the best of it.’

They went their separate ways in the 1980s and have remained close ever since and have never divorced. Claude also found a new partner, but they remained tight-lipped about the identity of their new loves.

During an interview with the Daily Mail in 2013, Petula said she believed her busy career was “preventing her from being a good mother.”

She said: ‘I wasn’t a good mother because I was away so much. I tried my best to be the perfect mother, the perfect wife and a great artist.

‘I thought I could do it all, but I can’t. Sorry, but that’s just not possible. I tried hard, but being a parent and getting married is a full-time job.”

On leaving her children behind to perform, she said: “Emotionally, every time I had to leave it was quite a shock, and I think the whole sad thing of saying goodbye to the children so often stayed with the children for years .

“I used to rush home whenever I could and turn down a lot of job offers so I could be with them, but I still had to earn a living.

“Whatever wrong I did back then, I hope I’ve been able to put it right since then.” Petula first stepped on stage at the age of six and went on to become one of the most successful British female artists in history, with more than 68 million records sold worldwide and a string of number one hits, including I Know A Place .’