"It's still really hard to believe": Lauren Graham reflects on her meaningful friendship with late Friends star Matthew Perry

On Friday, April 5, actress and author Lauren Graham recalled her close friendship with late Friends star Matthew Perry during a Q&A session at her Have I Told You This Already? book tour event at the Lincoln Theater. The Gilmore Girls star spoke to the audience and said that Perry was a "friend and a constant" in her life, as per Deadline. She also stated that Perry had come back into her life the previous year.

Speaking about his death, she said:

"It’s still really hard to believe."

Matthew Perry died at the age of 54 on October 28 last year. The news broke after he was found unresponsive in a pool at his Los Angeles home. Perry's death was ruled accidental and an autopsy report confirmed that he passed away due to the "acute effects of ketamine," as per People.

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"He was an almost in my life": Lauren Graham on her bond with Matthew Perry

Gilmore Girls alum Lauren Graham released her latest book, Have I Told You This Already?: Stories I Don’t Want to Forget to Remember in November 2022. The book contained original essays from the author about her time in show business and also featured personal stories regarding friendship and family.

While on a tour for the book, Graham attended an event at the Lincoln Theater in Washington D.C. During the Q&A section of the event, she opened up about her relationship with late Friends star Matthew Perry. According to Deadline, Lauren Graham mentioned that the news of his death was "really hard to believe" and continued:

"While he was not technically ever a boyfriend, he was an almost in my life. He was also a friend and a constant."

Lauren Graham further told the audience that she and Perry would "stretch" for a year and then he would always come back into her life. She noted that Perry had only just come back into her life last year.

Graham told the audience that the actor loved tennis and pickleball and that he gifted her a pickleball set for her birthday in March. As per the publication, the gift also contained a card that said "Be older."

She also revealed that he was very excited about the success of his 2022 memoir Friends, Lovers, and the Big Terrible Thing. As per Deadline, she stated:

"The solace I take from having seen him at the time I saw him was he was so thrilled with how his book was received — and not just because it was a huge success, but because his life’s work kind of became, 'How can I give back? How can I talk about the struggles I had and hopefully help someone else?'"

Matthew Perry (Image via Instagram/@mattyperry4)

During an appearance on CBS Mornings in November last year, Lauren Graham mentioned that Perry was proud of his book and the number of people it touched. She was also asked what her best memory of Matthew Perry was and said that no one made her laugh as hard as he did.

"No one made me laugh as hard. Just tears, streaming. There was just such joy in being around him and being his friend," she said.

She added:

"This last year you know, he was so proud of the book he wrote and of how many people it touched, and it was a success that gave him a level of happiness that I hadn't seen in him for a really long time."

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Matthew Perry's funeral was held at Los Angeles' Forest Lawn Memorial Park and was attended by his Friends co-stars.