_{A photograph recently made public by Alexei Sayle, featuring Edmondson, Mayall, Chris Ryan and Sayle himself src}

It’s hard to know where to start with Rik, he was always such a unique individual and I’m sure there’d be loads to say about his childhood and his youth. But let’s start with his comedy “youth”. While attending Manchester University, he met Ade Edmondson, with whom he would collaborate for the next thirty-five years. They debuted as a duo known as Twentieth Century Coyote, where Rik played a shy, nerdy and more straight-laced character that would foreshadow his later Young Ones character, Rick, and Ade played the more neurotic, violent guy, also a role he would reprise, to some extent, throughout his career.

I always found it really interesting how these two always seemed to go back to a certain character, there was always a similar dynamic between their characters and that was really great, because they played these character for over twenty years and developed them a great deal, so that was really interesting to watch.

In his youth, he was also part of the Comic Strip (well, they still make movies today and Rik was part of them for all his life, but I always think of it as something he did in his younger years). Together, they made various short comedic movies, among which Bad News (a sort of Spinal Tap, except better) and Mr Jolly Lives Next Door (which also featured another legendary Brit, Peter Cook, whom we’ll talk about in another post). Oh, and 'A Fistful of Travellers Checks' which is just amazing.

It was also during this time that he created such memorable characters as Kevin Turvey, an awkward, slightly mad private investigator who had a weekly special called ‘Kevin Turvey Investigates’ and reported his odd findings about death, sex, and other such universal mysteries.

And perhaps most importantly, Rik created the hit TV show The Young Ones, which revolutionized British comedy.

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In many ways, the show was to comedy what Monty Python’s Flying Circus had been some thirteen years earlier. It was a game changer in so many ways. If you don’t know it, it’s basically the adventures and mishaps of four very different students – a hippie, an “anarchist” (that would be Rik), a violent punk and a mobster. It was so great because it gave voice to a younger generation that was practically voiceless. It understood struggles and ideas and desires that young people had and it was exactly what Britain needed at that point. It was the sort of show kids loved and parents hated. And it had the added bonus of featuring some great bands such as Motorhead (it was a funding thing, mainly, part of their deal with the BBC).

One of the things I love most about Rik is that he was so prolific. He never became fixated on just one character or show. Because many performers do that. They get stuck in the “glory days” and never do anything else, you know?
But Rik did so much.

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After wrapping up two seasons of The Young Ones, Mayall, Edmondson and Planer (another Young One) joined forces with writer Ben Elton on the show ‘Filthy, Rich and Catflap’, which followed the adventures of a has-been actor (a jab at the has-beens who dominated the comedy universe at that point and weren’t making way for new talent, such as Mayall himself). Although less popular than The Young Ones, the show did have loads of funny moments and great potential of becoming another hit. Some of my favorite Mayall/Edmondson moments are from that.

Then, of course, there was The New Statesman, which saw Mayall in a very different role. Here, he played the role of Alan B’stard, a sleazy and abusive Conservative MP.

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And he played it to such perfection you almost liked the guy. Almost. Seeing it more than twenty years after the show aired is perhaps less poignant, but still, it gives you an incredible (and sadly very accurate) insight into British politics in the 1980s and the whole Thatcher era.
It would be impossible to pinpoint the best moment of the series, but here, you can find a short special they filmed for Comic Relief in 1988 (watch out for the bit where Rik lapses into Rick from The Young Ones, just goes to show what a brilliant actor the guy was).

After finishing with The New Statesman, Rik traveled to America, to star in Drop Dead Fred, a movie about a young woman who is so devastated her husband is cheating on her that she begins seeing her old imaginary friend, Drop Dead Fred). Yet another brilliant and heartwarming performance and a must-watch for any child (and adult). What I love about this movie, beyond Mayall’s top notch performance, is the fact it’s so deep, it goes beyond just a cheesy children’s movie. Makes me cry every time.

And then, there’s Bottom, where he reunited with Ade Edmondson. This one’s my personal favorite, from his entire career. Here, they play two aging roommates, desperately trying to either get rich or get girlfriends, but always failing.

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I think I like this one best because Mayall and Edmondson wrote it themselves and it really showcases their talent, as writers, as well. The older I get, the more I relate to the characters. Of course, they’re caricatures, exaggerations, but they touch on very real mentalities and problems. Not to mention it’s incredibly funny.
Bottom went on for three seasons, spawned one movie, as well as five live shows. A comedic era, in itself.

Of course, Rik Mayall starred in numerous other shows and movies, but these are just the highlights, as I see them. He died a most untimely and unfair death at the age of 56, falling into cardiac arrest after a morning jog. Like many on our list, but perhaps him most of all, I can’t imagine how much brighter this world would have been if he hadn’t died so soon.
It’s worth mentioning that aside from a fabulous writer and actor, he was an amazing human being, husband and father. It’s a sweet story, really. He met his wife, a make-up artist, while really young (filming for The Young Ones, I believe). He was already in a relationship with co-writer Lise Mayer at the time, but eloped with his wife-to-be and stayed with her for the rest of his life, always describing her as his one true love.

Authored by @honeydue

There are no references for this post. Just years and years of obssessively watching and reading Rik Mayall.

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