£15m Ken Dodd centre planned for Liverpool

A new £15m centre dedicated to the late comedian Sir Ken Dodd is planned for his home city, Liverpool.

The Sir Ken Dodd Happiness Centre will be home to Dodd's joke books, tickling sticks and other artefacts.

Plans for the four-storey centre, which will be attached to the city's Royal Court theatre, were approved last week by the city council.

Dodd regularly performed at the Royal Court during his career, and in the late 1970s helped save it from closure.

His widow Lady Dodd told BBC News he would be "honoured", "amazed" and "thrilled to bits" by the news.

The centre will be built on the site of the theatre's current Courtyard Bar. It is hoped it will open in time for the 100th anniversary of the comedian's birth in 2027.

Royal Court Chief Executive Gillian Miller said: "There is no better city than Liverpool to create a centre for happiness and wellbeing in, and we are looking forward to delivering a unique building for the city that epitomises happiness."

Funding for the building, which will also celebrate other comedians, will come from the Sir Ken Dodd Charitable Foundation and The Comedy Trust.