David Farnor | On 09, Jun 2014

Dog poo, dog poo, yucky yucky dog poo. WOOF.

However you came to know Rik Mayall, the chances are you wouldn’t be forgetting him any time soon. From his work on the big screen (An American Werewolf in London and Drop Dead Fred) to the small (The Young Ones, Bottom, Blackadder) you could be sure that the energetic, eccentric comedian would be as loud, rebellious and unpredictable as possible.

Who else could steal the entire series of Blackadder with one word? Or repeatedly batter close friend Ade Edmondson with a frying pan but still remain a hero?

Mayall met his future collaborators Ade and Ben Elton at the University of Manchester before going on to eventually create The Young Ones and Bottom, each iconic in their own way and influential upon their own audiences. A master of slapstick and a lover of chaos, his frequently rude but always smart sense of humour entertained adults’ funny bones and warped kids’ minds alike.

Ask any British comedy fan, regardless of age, and they would probably be able to tell you a favourite Rik Mayall quote. The fact that they would all be different, yet all equally hilarious, says everything you need to know about the actor’s career.

Rik published his autobiography in 2005: Bigger than Hitler – Better than Christ. There aren’t many that could get away with such a claim, let alone dare to make it. Nine years later, at the age of 56, survived by his you only wish he’d had more time to prove it.

A list of Rik Mayall films and TV shows available to watch online

An American Werewolf in London (1981)

The Young Ones (1984)

Blackadder (1986)

Filthy, Rich and Catflap (1987)

Drop Dead Fred (1991)

The New Statesman (1992)

Bottom (1995)

Churchill: The Hollywood Years (2004)

Just for the Record (2010)

Jonathan Creek The Clue of the Savant’s Thumb (2013)

The Comic Strip Presents… (2012)

Man Down (2013)

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