Rik Mayall Passes Away

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...and such a profound and sad loss it is!

I grew up watching The Young Ones and Bottom and was rolling around the floor in fits of laughter at his portrayal of Captain Flash in Blackadder.

He was a 'nobody' who made it all the way to Hollywood, even having his own 'feature movie' called Drop Dead Fred (I didn't like it that much, personally...but it was a good film nonetheless).

Rik died after a massive epileptic seizure, caused by a near-fatal bob-sled accident 16 years ago which left him in a coma for 5 days.

*the fact that he got an extra 16 years before the complications set in is quite astounding from a medical perspective!

Rik Mayall played a huge role in my childhood, along with 'cohorts', Ade Edmonson and Alexei Sayle.

I remember all the 'gang' back then (including a very young Pamela Stevenson)...

He will be sadly missed by fans and family...a comic genius way ahead of his time, who just said and did what he bloody felt like at the time and damn the consequences (Kenny Everett was another).

R.I.P Rik Mayall.

Indeed, it is a sad loss. I live in the UK, where he's still pretty popular, and I can recall him making me piss myself laughing even at the age of 10 with his Kevin Turvey character on the otherwise naff sketch show "A Kick up the Eighties".

"The Young Ones" may not have dated brilliantly, but that's not so much to do with the type of humour as the fact that - introduction of tution fees and most students having to work pat time to fund their degrees - being at college just isn't like that anymore. I loved it at the time. though.

His Alan B'stard charcater in "The New Statesman" was inspired too.