Tony Knight dies in strange accident at ‘Rock and Cars’ festival

A traveling dog trainer and comedian is remembered as a beloved and impressive person after his death in a strange accident.

Tony Knight, 54, was at the ‘Rock and Cars’ festival in Lavaur, southern France, when a large tree branch fell on him and six other attendees. He was the only fatality.

The Englishman had just paid off a house in nearby Bouillac, where he wanted to settle with his Australian partner of 15 years, Hayley Wright.

Wright’s sister Joanne Allen said Knight was not with his partner at the festival and that she had texted her a joke message just before the accident.

Mr Knight was a world-famous ‘dog listener’ and even helped train the pets of stars including Molly Meldrum, Sonia Kruger and the Dubai Royal Family.

“He was fit, he was passionate, he was charismatic, funny. He was just a good guy,” Ms Allen told Daily Mail Australia.

Mr. Knight and Mrs. Wright met when he was helping her dog treat his anxiety disorder, and a blossoming relationship developed shortly after.

Mrs Allen said her sister and Mr Knight were “like two peas in a pod” and often travelled around Europe together in the northern summers.

Tributes have poured in for world-famous dog trainer Tony Knight (pictured) after he was tragically killed by a falling branch at a French music festival last month

Mrs Wright now had to travel to the home they planned to share to organise his funeral and a wake with his family in the UK.

“The hardest part will be when she comes back to the farm because he has been there for four years and he is very easy to handle,” Mrs Allen said.

“Our mother lives on the farm now and says he’s everywhere… wherever you go, Tony is there.”

Mrs Allen also recalls the sudden shock of being told that Mr Knight had died suddenly. She said: ‘At that moment all your hopes are shattered.’

Mr. Knight had just started the life he dreamed of: working with dogs, traveling the world and owning a home in a picturesque French town, Ms. Allen said.

“If he had an idea, he never believed he couldn’t do it and just went for it.”

Mrs Allen remembers well how Mr Knight was the family joker at Christmas and often stoked the England-Australia rivalry in backyard cricket.

The Englishman had just paid off his house in a nearby town in France, where he wanted to live with his devastated Australian partner of 15 years, Hayley Wright (both pictured).

Mr Knight was remembered as a larger than life figure who was willing to try anything, even taking up stand-up comedy, which earned him a regular show in Ballarat.

Mrs. Allen launched a GoFundMe earlier this week to support her sister, which has already raised more than $4,600.

“(My sister) is arranging a funeral, paying hospital bills, meeting with detectives, doctors and the mayor, visiting the scene of the accident and settling Tony’s estate,” the fundraising page reads.

‘And all this while I experience enormous sadness and disbelief in a foreign country.

“Tony, we will love you and miss you forever. Life will never be the same, but we will wrap our arms around your beloved Hayley.”

Lavaur Mayor Bernard Carayon told the media that “such a dramatic event has never happened in our city.”

“I express our deepest condolences to the family at this difficult time,” he said.