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What a morning to have a lie in and my first hit on my Comedy Cremations team. https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/entertainment-arts-60154371 Nobody knew so much about the art of British comedy and the people who made it, working with the great, the good and the average for donkeys years. On that par with Frank Muir and Denis Norden, he could make a gag that would make you laugh out loud because of how silly it was or indeed how dry and cutting he could be. I will miss him, RIP to you Barry.

Austrian film producer Karl Spiehs, who produced nearly 90 films since 1961, died at 90 years: Especially the soap "Ein Schloss am Wörthersee" was huge TV-Hit. https://apa.at/news/erfolgsproduzent-karl-spiehs-mit-90-jahren-verstorben/

Times obit for Aussie socialite and conservationist John Rendall, who has died from COVID-19 aged 77. One of two gents who famously bought a lion cub called Christian (wiki) from Harrods in 1969 (yes, you read that correctly!!) and then released it into the African wild. A year later, he went looking for it to see if the lion would remember him. It did, and this was the reaction:

Death notice for Ray Boyle (wiki), 98, American film and television actor and production designer. Cause of death given as COVID-19 elsewhere online. Often credited under the pseudonym Dirk London, he appeared in shows like Gunsmoke and The Life and Legend of Wyatt Earp. There were rumours on the web in the past that he passed away some years ago so I guess this finally clears it up... Survived by his widow, the more notable actress Jan Shephard (wiki), who is 94 in March.

Another really sad one that feels like the end of an era. The last real link to that golden age of comedy: Hancock, Morecambe and Wise, the Two Ronnie's. At his age, it can never be classed as a shock but I agree he felt like someone who had potentially another decade plus in him. Recent picture on Gyles Brandreth's tweet on the BBC article and he looks fine really. RIP, Barry.

Will he turn up on his own obituary show? "Marvellous comedian, marvellous marvellous, had the pleasure of working with him once during a dissociative episode".

Cross-post with Scavenger Hunt (Wiki) Charanjit Singh dead age 90. A gold medalist of the 1964 Tokyo games from India in field hockey (team). He also won silver in the 1960 Rome games DOD seems to be Jan. 27th, 2022.

TMZ reporting that American actor Morgan Stevens (wiki) has died aged 70. Seems that police discovered his body at his home after neighbours reported not seeing him for several days. Best known for playing teacher David Reardon in two series of Fame from 1982 to 1984. Edit: Sun obit.

Very sad about this one. Thought he’d have a few more years tbh.

I first saw Barry Cryer as chairman of a comedy panel game called Jokers Wild. It was so long ago that he had black hair! Reunited with Humph, Tim and Willie, if you believe that sort of thing.

We don't; anniversaries are annual (clues in the name) not quinquennual.

We have a new name to add to the list of possible game enders @YorkshireBanker gets a second hit for All You Need Is Cash which means Jeanette Charles stands between him and victory (It actually has to be Jeanette Charles. If the Queen dies you do not win by default)

Yes he was always on hand to provide the commentary on the passing of the other comedians with whom he had worked. Because so much was behind the scenes as a writer he was probably in a unique position. I imagine John Lloyd fulfilling that role for the next generation and Barry has outlived most of his contemporaries

There hasn't been a documentary about UK comedy without Barry as a talking head since, ooh, 1996 - can the genre even continue now? Come on Vinegar Tits, what was he really like?

After weeks they denied she was on life support...

Oh no, the least we can do to mark this is rock again in her memory -

Acht well, it was a thought, ha! A lovely pair of Bristolians, I'm sure.

It's a coincidence. The actress on IMDb was supposedly born Aug 1915 in Bristol and died in Nov 2016, also in Bristol. These both match in FreeBMD and the GRO Index. Her name at death was the same as it was at birth, suggesting she never married. She was the only person born as "Audrey Noble" in Bristol in 1915. The death notice above for Audrey Lilian Noble... she was born in Bristol in 1915 but as Audrey L. Taylor. She married a Mr. Noble in Bristol in 1941 and then became Audrey L. Noble.

Jeez, how old was he?

Discovered only know, that american writer and poet David Wagoner, who published numerous poetry collections and novels, died at 95 years already last month before christmas. He was twice nominated for the National Book Award. His best-known works include In Broken Country (1979, poetry) and The Escape Artist (1965, fiction). https://www.nytimes.com/2021/12/29/books/david-wagoner-dead.html

She is an unique for you CONGRATULATIONS @gcreptile

Don't remember hearing him at all in the last series, rather worryingly, but Barry Cryer was on last night's show, and sounded in pretty good voice - well, for someone who had to sing 'There's No-one Quite Like Grandma' to the tune of 'Theme from New York, New York.' A very Deathlisty name though, and probably worth considering for 2022.

For lack of a better place to put it, this week Talking Pictures showed an interview with Melvyn Hayes filmed in October 2021 (it might be on their new online archive too) - and he frankly looks and sounds great for his age. Just turned 87.