Simon Brint

His father, from a large working-class family, had lied about his age to join the army; his mother was the St Anne's College, Oxford-educated daughter of a high court judge.

He worked with the artist Anthony Benjamin, the singer and tightrope walker Hermine Demoriane, and theatre director Ken Campbell, as well as helping to disguise elephants as mammoths for the film Quest for Fire and co-writing, with Simon Wallace, the music for the Oscar-winning short A Shocking Accident in 1982.

[2] He also continued to work as a composer for other TV comedy series, including Bottom (producing versions of BB's Blues and Last Night with the specially-formed group The Bum Notes), Hippies (which he also sang the theme tune to), Absolutely Fabulous, 2point4 Children (writing the song 'Age' performed by Gary Olsen), music and dozens of songs for multiple incarnations of The Lenny Henry Show, all of Alexei Sayle's TV work, Comic Relief (on which he was resident composer), A Bit of Fry & Laurie (producing all of Hugh Laurie's songs for the fourth and final series), the comedy special Tracey Ullman: A Class Act, the musical episodes of Two Pints of Lager and a Packet of Crisps, Lazarus and Dingwall and Murder Most Horrid, as well as TV drama including London's Burning and Monarch of the Glen.

The duo ceased to appear on the French and Saunders series from the 1994 special onwards (their role having been gradually decreased by incoming producer Jon Plowman), but Brint continued to provide music until the show ended in 2009 and his singing voice (occasionally as Ken) was frequently heard.

As a producer for other artists, he oversaw Victoria Wood's single "The Smile Song" (released in 1991 as the B-side of Hale and Pace's "The Stonk"), and the debut EP of Ella Edmondson.

The initial rounds of Idiot Bastard Band gigs, incorporating original comedy songs, oddball cover versions, guest comedians and some resurrected Raw Sex routines, became Brint's final public appearances.