Two Friends cast members pay personal tributes to Matthew Perry

In a joint statement last month, the whole Friends cast – Jennifer Aniston, Lisa Kudrow, Courteney Cox, Matt Le Blanc and David Schwimmer – described Matthew Perry’s death as an “unfathomable loss”.

“We are all so utterly devastated by the loss of Matthew,” the statement said. “We will always cherish the joy, the light, the blinding intelligence he brought to every moment – not just to his work, but in life as well. He was always the funniest person in the room. More than that, he was the sweetest, with a giving and selfless heart.”

Now, two of the Friends cast have paid their first individual tributes to Perry, who was found dead at his Los Angeles home last month at the age of 54, sparking an outpouring of grief from fans across the world.

LeBlanc, 56, became the first to post an individual tribute, sharing pictures of him on set with Perry, as he said on Instagram: “It is with a heavy hear I say goodbye. The times we had together are honestly among the favourite times of my life. It was an honor to share the stage with you and to call you my friend. I will always smile when I think of you and I’ll never forget you. Never. Spread your wings and fly brother you’re finally free. Much love. And I guess you’re keeping the 20 bucks you owe me.”

A few hours later, Cox shared a clip of her with Perry’s character Chandler on Instagram and said she was “so grateful for every moment” they worked together.

“When you work with someone as closely as I did with Matthew, there are thousands of moments I wish I could share. For now here’s one of my favourites.”

She also revealed a behind-the-scenes story as she said: “Chandler and Monica were supposed to have a one-night fling in London. But because of the audience’s reaction, it became the beginning of their love story. In this scene, before we started rolling, he whispered a funny line for me to say. He often did things like that. He was funny and he was kind.”

Perry’s funeral took place earlier this month with his Friends co-stars reportedly in attendance.

A new foundation has been set up in his name promising to continue his commitment to “helping others struggling with the disease of addiction” following his public battles with alcohol and drugs.