RIP Tim Brooke-Taylor

[Small Man Big Horse]

The coronavirus according to Chortle on twitter. Fucking hell. Anyway, this one has really got to me, he was an enormous part of my childhood and a man I've admired ever since.

Edit: Ah, just seen the main thread in GB. Sorry about that Neil.

[idunnosomename]

Well it seems only right he gets a proper comedy thread too

[Phoenix Lazarus]

Just seen this!  What a shock!

I hope Tim died with his shiny shoes on.

[Pink Gregory]

He was only at the Slapstick Festival in January. 

https://cosmicshambles.com/bookshambles/stephen-merchant-tim-brooke-taylor-slapstick-part-one

Really nice interview talking about At Last the 1948 show and Marty Feldman.

(CW - Robin Ince)

:(

[Jockice]

The coronavirus according to Chortle on twitter. Fucking hell. Anyway, this one has really got to me, he was an enormous part of my childhood and a man I've admired ever since.

Edit: Ah, just seen the main thread in GB. Sorry about that Neil.

Me too. I'm actually crying.

[vainsharpdad]

Fuck

[DrGreggles]

Fuck. Such a nice guy and great (and underrated) performer.

RIP Tim

[Lisa Jesusandmarychain]

# Here's a wreath for that Tim Brooke Taylor

We shall lay it down #

( This post should be sung to the tune of that Simon and Garfunkel song.)

[purlieu]

Fuck. This just feels so totally wrong. Grew up with ISIHAC and The Goodies so this is such a horrible shock. RIP Tim.

[Mornington Oblong]

Absolutely gutted...massive loss. Only just bought DVD box set of The Goodies and was going through them and reliving the silly, fun and great comedic joy that the 3 of them gave me as a child. Now in my late 40's seeing them again it still never fails to bring a smile and uncontrolled laughter.

Tim 'I'm a teapot!' Brooke-Taylor RIP

[Jockice]

Call up The Funky Gibbon on youtube and check out the caption on the second one down (the totp2 one.) Someone's having a laugh.

[Annie Labuntur]

Edit: Ah, just seen the main thread in GB. Sorry about that Neil.

But unlike them you made the effort with the hyphen.

I sat a couple of rows behind him at the Pythons' last show and when the Four Yorkshiremen sketch started had the urge to point at him and shout "The author over here!", à la "It's Alvy Singer!"

The funniest cryer since Barry Stan Laurel.

[Icehaven]

How crap.

[Pseudopath]

Aw bollocks. RIP Tim. Thanks for all the laughs.

[extraordinary walnuts]

Really awful news, but I'm sitting here cracking up at the mere memory of how hard I used to laugh at The Goodies when I was a lad. RIP Tim.

Like Kenneth Williams, Tim worked with Orson Welles! https://youtu.be/6ewT3wzhgq0

[Phoenix Lazarus]

Really awful news, but I'm sitting here cracking up at the mere memory of how hard I used to laugh at The Goodies when I was a lad. RIP Tim.

Like Kenneth Williams, Tim worked with Orson Welles! https://youtu.be/6ewT3wzhgq0

I enjoyed that.  It is one of several segments I see-and Bill wrote the incredibly catchy one-man-band song.  Its history below.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/One_Man_Band_(unfinished_film)

[EbbyVale]

Oh, that's incredibly sad. He'll be sung into heaven by Jeremy Hardy.

[extraordinary walnuts]

I enjoyed that.  It is one of several segments I see-and Bill wrote the incredibly catchy one-man-band song.  Its history below.

Oh that's interesting! I had no idea all three of them were involved. The Lord Plumfield sketch is here: https://youtu.be/vz38wHRKsSE?t=1354
I'd never clocked before that it was Graeme playing the butler.

[PinkNoise]

This one has really hurt. The Goodies were the first comedy I was obsessed with: pre-Python, pre-NTNOCN, pre-Young Ones. I thought they were invincible. Tim survived Twinkle, he survived being run over by the giant Dougal, he survived being encased in concrete... but the fucking COVID got him.

Saw him at the BFI in September for the Python celebration... still funny, still a great performer. Watching the Goodies DVD set was getting me through the lockdown... bit too sad to watch any tonight tho.

[Phoenix Lazarus]

he survived being run over by the giant Dougal

Any excuse.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6lJ7c3bqV-o

[pigamus]

Ah bollocks bollocks bollocks. Lovely man he was.

[idunnosomename]

Oh, that's incredibly sad. He'll be sung into heaven by Jeremy Hardy.

:(

[TheMonk]

I Loved The Goodies.
saw their Australian reunion show in 2005. Such a joy.
He was by far the nicest to chat to afterwards. Lovely man.
There'll never be a show anything like theirs again.

[Ignatius_S]

Terribly sad news - and the reaction to it speaks volumes about Brooke-Taylor, both professionally and personally. A text from a friend saying how sad they were to hear it and how Brooke-Taylor was part of his childhood speaks for many.

A few nights ago, I was re-watching a Marty Feldman documentary - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t4mz7ohN_VM. It's a good watch and Tim's contribution is typical when talking about comedy and colleagues; thoughtful, insightful and aware of the subjective nature of his views. It's interesting to contrast what he says with John Cleese's comments, particularly when the memory of material being rejected 40 years earlier still rankles.

A few years ago, I saw TBT talking about Feldman at the Slapstick Festival. As well as illuminating, it was touching to see the fondness he had for Feldman and the happy memories working with him - reason enough to post one of his favourite Feldman Sketches: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JTcx_IaI8BY. Feldman held TBT in high regard; in his posthumously published memoirs, when mentioning about all the great writers in the BBC bar at the time of The Frost Report, TBT is the only one he mentions by name.

The link that Pink Gregory posted contains one of the four events that TBT was involved in at this year's Slapstick Festival and well worth a listen. Another was talking about I'm Sorry I Don't Have a Clue with Barry Cryer and Graeme Garden, to Rob Brydon. One highlight of that event for me, was Brydon amusing TBT by saying that he was jealous for not getting the Saga gig, a remark that the two kept referring back to and it was lovely seeing how they played off each other.

Another was a Goodies celebration - https://www.cookdandbombd.co.uk/forums/index.php/topic,77697.0.html. And the fourth, saw Tim, Graeme and Bill joining in I'm Sorry I'll Read That Again...Again!, which really was something to behold.

Earlier the team posted:

LADY CONSTANCE TAKES HER FINAL BOW...

We're sure you've heard the incredibly tragic news that the incomparable Tim Brooke-Taylor has passed away too soon.

Whilst it's true that we wouldn't be doing this show without Dirk Maggs introducing Barnaby to Graeme (and Graeme and Bill agreeing a one-off charity show to begin with), it probably isn't noted as much that Tim was the one who came to see that debut show and reported back to Graeme and Bill that we weren't half bad and should be allowed to take it on tour.

Tim appeared in many of our shows and was always gutted when he couldn't make a particular date, so much so that the 2020 Tour had a script written around him being involved in the entire show rather than a special cameo. He just was part of the team and we loved him for that.

Generous, joyous and mischievous, we're all proud to have shared a stage with a comedy legend and absolutely gutted that we won't again.

Sleep well, Lady Constance.

Tim had been involved in the Slapstick Festival since 2007, becoming a patron soon after - Chris Daniels, the director of the festival posted this earlier:

Tim Brooke-Taylor OBE 1940 – 2020

It is with deep deep sadness that my Slapstick colleagues and I have learned of the passing of Tim Brooke-Taylor from COVID -19 related illness last night.

Tim was first and foremost a dear friend, both personally and to the Bristol Slapstick Festival. Tim's passion, enthusiasm, love for classic comedy and, in particular Buster Keaton, meant that Tim and Slapstick Festival was a perfect pairing, with Tim becoming a Patron for us in 2008. Each year Tim would tell us that Slapstick was his favourite festival and expressed regularly how much he looked forward it. 

As one-third of the legendary comedy team The Goodies and through his work on such shows as I'm Sorry I Haven't A Clue, Do Not Adjust Your Set, At Last the 1948 Show and more, Tim's contribution to the history of comedy is notable and significant.

Tim first appeared at Slaptick in 2007 with Graeme Garden and has been a special guest almost every year since – appearing in and hosting countless events over the years. He was with us again in Bristol in January 2020, taking part in no fewer than four events with his usual enthusiasm, passion, charm and energy to the delight of full house audiences. 

Everyone involved with Slapstick joins me in sending sincere and heartfelt sympathies to his wife Christine, his family and friends. 

He'll be sorely missed.

[Ignatius_S]

I Loved The Goodies.
saw their Australian reunion show in 2005. Such a joy.
He was by far the nicest to chat to afterwards. Lovely man.
There'll never be a show anything like theirs again.

As the short-lived We Are Klang series so richly demonstrated.

[Pauline Walnuts]

https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/m000hxzw

The late Tim Brooke-Taylor's friends and colleagues recall his long career in comedy, featuring some of his finest moments on the panel of I'm Sorry I Haven't a Clue.

[Ignatius_S]

Slapstick Festival has uploaded I'm Sorry I'll Read That Again, Again...Re-United! With The Goodies from this year's festival: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2m2GnvhtqJI

There's a lovely introduction from Barnaby Eaton-Jones from the show - as he also mentions, Barnaby was involved the recent Goodies special for Audible; more were planned (as The Goodies revealed at the festival) but sadly that's obviously not to be.

https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/m000hxzw

The late Tim Brooke-Taylor's friends and colleagues recall his long career in comedy, featuring some of his finest moments on the panel of I'm Sorry I Haven't a Clue.

Thanks for that - it's on 4 May for this who haven't seen.