Some very very sad news this morning folks, Richard Briers, star of The Good Life and Monarch of the Glen, has sadly passed away at the age of 79.
His agent has confirmed that the veteran star of stage and screen passed away "peacefully" at his London home yesterday. He had been suffering from emphysema for the past few years.
"I was diagnosed five years ago and didn't think it would go quite as badly as it has. It's a bugger, but there it is. I used to love smoking" Briers said in a recent interview. "It's totally my fault. So, I get very breathless, which is a pain in the backside. Trying to get upstairs... oh God, it's ridiculous. Of course, when you're bloody nearly 80 it's depressing, because you've had it anyway."
His agent, Christopher Farrar, expressed his condolences to Briers' family and said he had been a joy to work with. "He has a unique and special place in the hearts of so many. He will be greatly missed", he said. We've got fond memories of Richard and Felicity Kendall's days in Surbiton here in the office.
RIP.