British comedian Tim Brooke-Taylor, member of 'The Goodies' dies at 79 of coronavirus

British performer Tim Brooke-Taylor, a member of the comedy trio The Goodies, dies after contracting the novel coronavirus. He was 79. The news of his demise was confirmed by his agent who said that Tim died Sunday morning from COVID-19. 

For the uninformed, Brooke-Taylor was part of Cambridge University’s Footlights revue, the breeding ground of several generations of British comic talent. Tim first started into radio and television comedy in the 1960s with future Monty Python members John Cleese and Graham Chapman.

He later went on to form The Goodies with Graeme Garden and Bill Oddie. The Goodies specialised in sketches combining visual inventiveness, slapstick, and songs. Their song Funky Gibbon even became a UK top 10 chart hit in 1975. The Goodies formed part of a golden era of British television comedy in the 1960s and 70s that included Monty Python’s Flying Circus and Not the Nine O’Clock News.

About Tim's demise, his Goodies co-star Garden said Tim was "a funny, sociable, generous man who was a delight to work with. Audiences found him not only hilarious but also adorable. His loss at this dreadful time is particularly hard to bear." Meanwhile, writer-performer Stephen Fry tweeted, "Just heard the devastating news of the death of Tim Brooke-Taylor. A hero for as long as I can remember, and - on a few golden occasions - a colleague and collaborator on I’m Sorry I Haven’t A Clue. Gentle, kind, funny, wise, warm, but piercingly witty when he chose to be. So sad."

Tim is survived by his wife Christine and two sons.