In 1998, Mayall was involved in a serious quad bike accident. The pair wrote the first draft of their feature film Guest House Paradiso while Mayall was still hospitalised. They planned to co-direct, but Edmondson took on the duties himself. Mayall returned to work doing voice-overs. His first post-accident acting job was in the 1998 Jonathan Creek Christmas special, as DI Gideon Pryke, a role he later reprised in 2013. Jonathan Creek also featured Adrian Edmondson in a recurring role, though the two did not appear in any episodes together. It goes without saying that Rik dominates every scene with energy and inspired timing. The play was nominated for an award and has been repeated many times most recently on Radio 4 Extra in May 2014. I talked to Rik about adapting the scenario and characters for screen and stage only last month. It hardly needs emphasising, if proof were needed, of the longevity of Coyote – but especially the Rik Mayall legacy. He attended King's School, Worcester, to which he won a free scholarship. He failed most of his O-levels and scraped through A-levels. [5] In 1975, Mayall went to the University of Manchester to study drama. He claimed that he failed to get a degree, or that he did not even turn up to his finals, [6] but in reality he graduated with lower second-class honours in 1978. [7] It was there that he met his future comedy partner Ade Edmondson; [8] Ben Elton, a fellow student; and Lise Mayer, with whom he later co-wrote The Young Ones. [9] Career [ edit ] Young Ones and The Comic Strip [ edit ] Mayall was the second child of John Mayall and Gillian (née Harrild) Mayall, who both worked as drama teachers. He made his first stage appearance at age seven in one of his father’s plays. In 1975 he began studying drama at the University of Manchester, where he met actor-writer Adrian (“Ade”) Edmondson, who would become his close friend and longtime collaborator. The duo met actor-writer Ben Elton and writer Lise Mayer at the university, both of whom they would later team up with to write The Young Ones. Career and personal life Tales of Uplift and Moral Improvement Retrieved September 24, 2020. IMDb (Internet Movie Database).

Mayall was born in Harlow, Essex. When he was three, he moved to Droitwich Spa, Worcestershire. He studied drama at the University of Manchester. He had a relationship with writer Lise Mayer in the early 1980s. He was married to Scottish make-up artist, Barbara Robbin from 1985 until his death. The couple had two daughters and a son together. His autobiography was published in 2005. Rik and I last worked together for the recording of my Radio 4 play: A Higher Education. He appeared as the corrupt professor Don Crookfield, at a failing drama department. This off-beat satire, that also features Helen Lederer and Philip Glenister, owes much to those Coyote days combining heightened character types with a farcical, pantomimic performance style. Also like Coyote shows of the past, and unusually for radio drama, some scenes were improvised “live” when recorded. We were never sure what version of the words Rik was going to deliver – even when he was supposed to be reading from a script. Wilmut, Roger (1989). Didn't You Kill My Mother-in-law?: The Story of Alternative Comedy in Britain from the Comedy Store to Saturday Live. Methuen Drama; First Edition. p.53. ISBN 9780413173904.a 20-foot-high (6.1m) mural of Mayall was created by street artist Gnasher, on the Playhouse at Mayall's birthplace in Harlow, Essex. [70] In 2004 Mayall had a starring cameo role playing the record boss in the video short "ABBA: Our Last Video Ever". [33] Laws, Roz (29 December 2002). "I ran away from her in the January sales to wed secret lover; Rik Mayall Tells How He Cheated on Deayton's Girl". Sunday Mercury . Retrieved 10 June 2014. Singh, Anita (9 June 2014). "Rik Mayall dies aged 56". The Daily Telegraph . Retrieved 10 June 2014.

Channel 4 poll, Comedians' Comedian, Mayall was voted among the top 50 comedy performers of all time. [60] Mayall married the make-up artist Barbara Robbin in 1985, and is survived by her and their three children, Rosie, Sidney and Bonnie. The Rik Mayall FAQ". Orangeneko.com. Archived from the original on 28 October 2004 . Retrieved 14 June 2014.

BREAKING NEWS: Rik Mayall dies aged 56". Herald Express. 9 June 2014. Archived from the original on 12 June 2014 . Retrieved 11 June 2014.

Mayall, Richard Michael ( Rik) ( 1958–2014), comedian, writer, and actor, was born on 7 March 1958 at 98 Pittmans Field, Harlow, Essex, the second of four children of John Mayall, schoolteacher, and his wife Gillian Baxter, née Harrild ( b. 1930), also a teacher who, like her husband, specialized in drama. The family moved to Droitwich Spa in Worcestershire in 1961 and Mayall was educated at Rashwood Primary School, precociously winning a free scholarship to the King’s School, Worcester, at the age of nine. a b c Barber, Lynn (17 December 2000). "Rik Mayall: Forever young". The Guardian . Retrieved 11 June 2014. In September 2012, Mayall starred in The Last Hurrah, a six-episode, full-cast audio series that he also co-wrote with Craig Green and Dominic Vince. [46] Kathryn Flett (2 October 2005). "TV: Love Soup | All About George | Elizabeth I | No Direction Home | Television & radio | The Observer". Theguardian.com . Retrieved 19 June 2014.

McSmith, Andy (16 September 2010). No Such Thing As Society: A History of Britain in the 1980s. Constable & Robinson. p.149. ISBN 978-1-84901-661-2 . Retrieved 10 June 2014. Ngowan, Eric Haynes; Bacon, Lucy (2 August 2004). "The Young Ones". Comedy Connections. Series 2. Episode 6. BBC. Fletcher, Alex; Nissim, Mayer (10 June 2014). "Rik Mayall 1958–2014 obituary: A true one-off and comedy eccentric". Digital Spy . Retrieved 10 June 2014.