Olushola Omogbehin
The remains of the late Nollywood god, Olu Jacobs has been laid to rest in Lagos sequel to a funeral service that took place on Friday.
In the funeral service at the Freedom Centre in Lekki, stars of the Nigerian film industry, family members, colleagues, friends, dignitaries and many others gathered to honour the late actor.
In the see of dignitaries at the funeral were Nollywood personalities such as Kate Henshaw, Stan Nze, Morayo Afolabi-Brown, Ireti Doyle, Lala Akindoju, Patrick Doyle, Stephanie Okereke and Ernest Obi, Shaffy Bello, Keppy Ekpeyong.
Lagos State First Lady, Dr Ibijoke Sanwo-Olu, Deputy Governor, Dr Obafemi Hamzat and his wife, Oluremi Hamzat were also in attendant including former Governor Ibikunle Amosun of Ogun State.
The funeral which came two days after a Night of Tributes was held in his honour at Glover Memorial Hall, Marina, Lagos Island, on Wednesday, brought together family members, public figures and others to bid him final goodbye to this sinful world.
Born in 1942 in Egba Alake, the late Oludotun Baiyewun Jacobs had his formative years in Kano, where he attended Holy Trinity School.
His passion for performing arts began in England where he trained as an actor at The Royal Academy of Dramatic Art in London and subsequently began building his stage career in the 1970s.
In 1972, he played The Boy in ‘A Taste of Honey’ at the Crucible Theatre in Sheffield and later appeared in a number of British television productions, including ‘The Goodies,’ ‘Till Death Us Do Part’ and ‘Barlow at Large.’
In 1978, he portrayed President Mageeba in Michael Codron’s presentation of Sir Tom Stoppard’s play ‘Night and Day’ before returning to Nigeria in 1990.
He featured in the NTA detective series ‘The Third Eye’ and thereafter acted in hundreds of films where he established himself as one of the most celebrated actors in Nollywood.
He got several awards including the Lifetime Achievement Award at the 2021 Africa International Film Festival (AFRIFF) and an Icon Award from the Audio-Visual Rights Society of Nigeria (AVRS) in 2022.
At the 2023 AMVCA, Jacobs received the Industry Merit Award in recognition of his outstanding contribution to acting.
He died on September 16, 2026, at the age of 84.
