The comedian Gareth Richards, a former colleague of Frank Skinner, has died after being involved in a car crash on the M25 in the UK last month. He was 41.
Richards' death was confirmed by his wife, Laura, in a post on Facebook on Saturday, where she wrote: "It is with great sadness that I have to share that Gareth Richards passed away on Friday 7th April (Good Friday) at 6.30pm.
"He was in a terrible car accident on Monday 27th March at 11.30pm and sustained serious brain injuries. It was a miracle that he arrived at the hospital alive.
"Since then, the doctors and nurses have been incredible and have kept him in a stable and sedated condition.
"However, the latest scan revealed that the extent of the damage was so severe that they would have to remove all of the supportive medications and allow him to be at peace.
"The boys are bearing up well. There will be details of the funeral and other ways to remember Gareth to follow, as I know that he was well-loved. At the moment the grief is a lot to cope with. Thank you all for your support and kindness."
Skinner, 66, struggled to hold back tears during his radio show last week as he explained that his friend had been in a "very big road accident".
While telling his Absolute Radio show listeners about the collision and Richards' condition on 1 April, Skinner admitted "it's not looking great" and described Richards as "a fantastic bloke".
Richards had co-hosted with Skinner and Emily Dean when The Frank Skinner Show first went on air in the UK.
He went on to support Skinner on two of his comedy tours in 2014 and again in 2020.
Richards began his comedy career in 2004.
He was a finalist in the Hackney Empire New Act of the Year 2007 competition and was also runner-up in the Amused Moose Laugh-Off in 2007.
As his success grew, Richards took his first solo stand-up act - Stand Up Between Songs - to the Edinburgh Fringe Festival in 2010, after which he was nominated for the Foster's Edinburgh Comedy Award Best Newcomer prize.
Richards took a show to the famous arts festival almost every year following and was due to perform his tenth solo show at the Edinburgh Fringe Festival in 2023.
Source: Press Association
