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Rik Mayall: Lord of Misrule

A tribute to comedian Rik Mayall, who left a body of work that spanned four decades, including characters Rik in The Young Ones and Lord Flashheart in Blackadder.

Comedian Rik Mayall died suddenly on 9 June 2014. Mayall's blend of rocket-fuelled physical comedy, surrealism, subversive satire and pompous punk wit left a body of work that spanned four decades. Mayall's characters include the Black Country's investigative nerd Kevin Turvey, Felicity Kendal-adoring student and 'People's Poet' Rik in The Young Ones, ruthless MP Alan B'Stard in The New Statesman, seedy loser Richie in Bottom, and larger-than-life characters Robin Hood and flying ace Lord Flashheart from Blackadder.

Narrated by Simon Callow, this programme salutes Rik Mayall and celebrates his part in the UK's comedy history using rare and unseen archive footage. It also features contributions from people who knew or admired him, including Michael Palin, Simon Pegg, Lenny Henry, Ben Elton, Alexei Sayle, Christopher Ryan, Tim McInnerny, Jools Holland, Ruby Wax and Greg Davies.

59 minutes

Last on

Sat 6 Aug 2022 21:45
BBC Four

Clips

See all clips from Rik Mayall: Lord of Misrule (2)

Music Played

Timings (where shown) are from the start of the programme in hours and minutes

  • 00:05

    Link Wray

    Ace of Spades

  • 00:12

    Sandy Nelson

    Let There Be Drums

  • 00:15

    Link Wray

    Rumble

  • 00:16

    Florence + the Machine

    Kiss With A Fist

  • 00:18

    Lieutenant Pigeon

    Mouldy Old Dough

  • 00:20

    Link Wray & The Wray Men

    Raw-Hide

  • 00:20

    Tv Themes

    The Young Ones

  • 00:27

    The Young Ones

    Challenged

  • 00:28

    Suede

    Beautiful Ones

  • 00:28

    Suede

    Beautiful Ones

  • 00:52

    Sigur Rós

    Varðeldur

  • 00:53

    Sigur Rós

    Loop

Credits

Narrator Simon Callow
Producer Andy Humphries
Director Andy Humphries
Executive Producer Tara Duffy
Participant Rik Mayall
Participant Alexei Sayle
Participant Greg Davies
Participant Ruby Wax
Participant Andy de la Tour
Participant Rowland Rivron
Participant Lloyd Peters
Participant Lise Mayer
Participant Ben Elton
Participant Lenny Henry
Participant Pauline Melville
Participant Michael Palin
Participant Tim McInnerny
Participant Christopher Ryan
Participant Jools Holland
Participant Simon Pegg
Participant Mike Redfern
Participant Jon Plowman
Participant John Lloyd

Broadcasts

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