Remembering Rik Mayall, 12 years since his death

Today marks the 12th anniversary of comedian Rik Mayall's death; he died in London on 9 June 2014 at age 56 from a sudden heart attack after returning from a jogging session. Mayall rose to national fame with the anarchic BBC sitcom The Young Ones and cemented his persona as Richie in Bottom, known for bombastic physical comedy and boundary-pushing satire. A memorial bench on a traffic island in Hammersmith, where Bottom's opening titles were filmed, honors him and describes him as 'Dr The Rik Mayall'. Mayall's high-energy, anarchic approach helped reshape British alternative comedy in the 1980s and continues to influence comedians and sketch shows, making his work worth revisiting.