Jason Manford shares touching final message he sent to Sean Lock before his death as he urges people to check in on friends and loved ones
Jason Manford has shared the final message he sent to friend Sean Lock before his heartbreaking death.
It was revealed on Wednesday that the much-loved 8 Out Of 10 Cats star died of cancer aged 58 surrounded by his family at home.
And taking to Twitter shortly after the sad news, Jason, 40, shared the touching text he sent his pal a few weeks ago as he urged people to check in on their friends and loves ones.
The last text: Jason Manford has shared the final message he sent to friend Sean Lock before his heartbreaking death (pictured in 2020)
Alongside a screenshot of his text, Jason, who was a team captain on 8 Out Of 10 Cats with Sean for six seasons, said: ‘I texted him couple of weeks ago and I’m now so glad I did.’
He continued: ‘If you’ve a friend who’ve you not spoken to for a while, drop them a message and check in. It could be the last time. RIP Sean.’
Hi poignant message read: ‘Hi Sean, hope you and your family are doing okay.
‘Did Countdown last week and missed having you there. I often think back to my days on Cats with you & how much I appreciated working with you, the buzz I’d get on the rare occasion something I said would make you laugh!
‘It could be the last time’: Alongside a screenshot of his text, Jason said: ‘I texted him couple of weeks ago and I’m now so glad I did’
Touching: Hi poignant message read: ‘Hi Sean, hope you and your family are doing okay. He heartbreakingly concluded with ‘hopefully see you soon’
So sad: It was revealed on Wednesday that the much-loved 8 Out Of 10 Cats star died of cancer aged 58 surrounded by his family at home
‘Anyway, just wanted to check in and wish you and your family all the best. Lots of love and hopefully see you soon.’
The comedian also praised Sean as a ‘comedy legend’ as he responded to a fan who recently listened to a podcast with the two of them.
Jason replied: ‘He was a fantastic comedian and an even better bloke. Starting my first tour warm up tonight and it’s gonna be incredibly hard not to be thinking of him the whole time. A comedy legend, a brilliant husband, father & friend.’
Sean’s death was announced on Wednesday in a statement from his agent Off The Kerb Productions, which said: ‘It is with great sadness that we have to announce the death of Sean Lock. He died at home from cancer, surrounded by his family.
Message: Taking to Twitter shortly after the sad news, Jason, 40, shared the touching text he sent his pal a few weeks ago as he urged people to check in on their friends and loves ones
‘Sean was one of Britain’s finest comedians, his boundless creativity, lightning wit and the absurdist brilliance of his work, marked him out as a unique voice in British comedy.
‘Sean was also a cherished husband and father to three children. Sean will be sorely missed by all that knew him. We kindly request that the privacy of his family and children is respected at this difficult time.’
The comedian, known for his surreal content and deadpan style, was best known as a team captain on Jimmy Carr’s popular Channel 4 comedy panel show and its spin-off 8 Out Of 10 Cats Does Countdown.
Co-stars: Jason, who was a team captain on 8 Out Of 10 Cats with Sean for six seasons (pictured with host Jimmy Carr)
Praise: The comedian also praised Sean as a ‘comedy legend’ as he responded to a fan who recently listened to a podcast with the two of them
Jimmy Carr led the tributes today, saying it was ‘brutal news’ and that he was ‘laughing and crying’ while watching clips of Lock today – while his friend Lee Mack, who called him a ‘true original both in comedy and life’.
Father-of-three Lock, who had two daughters and one son with his wife Anoushka, appeared on Have I Got News for You, QI, and They Think It’s All Over – and also wrote and starred in the popular BBC sitcom 15 Storeys High.
Jon Richardson, Lock’s fellow captain on 8 Out Of Ten Cats, praised his ‘incredible comic brain’; Susie Dent from the Countdown version described him as an ‘exceptional man’; Ricky Gervais said he was ‘one of the funniest, most influential comedians of a generation’; and Alan Davies said Lock was ‘funny on stage, hilarious off’.
RIP: Sean’s death was announced on Wednesday in a statement from his agent Off The Kerb Productions, which said: ‘It is with great sadness that we have to announce the death of Sean Lock. He died at home from cancer, surrounded by his family (pictured in 2017)
Lock’s agent labelled the Woking-born star as ‘one of Britain’s finest comedians’, saying his ‘boundless creativity, lightning wit and the absurdist brilliance of his work, marked him out as a unique voice in British comedy’.
It is not known what form of a cancer Lock had battled, but he previously made a full recovery from skin cancer which he blamed on over-exposure to the sun while working on building sites before he became a comedian.
He previously credited a one-night stand in the 1990s with saving his life, after the woman he was with spotted a black and misshapen patch of skin on his back, which he had removed in hospital and it was diagnosed as cancer.
Meanwhile a Channel 4 spokesman said: ‘Incredibly sad to learn of the loss of one of our greatest comedians, Sean Lock’, the channel wrote on Twitter.
TV: The comedian, known for his surreal content and deadpan style, was best known as a team captain on Jimmy Carr’s popular Channel 4 comedy panel show and its spin-off 8 Out Of 10 Cats Does Countdown
‘A much loved part of the C4 family he’s played a huge role on the channel for over two decades, and we’ll miss him. Our thoughts are with his family and friends.’
Lock appeared in a number of Channel 4 shows including 8 Out Of 10 Cats and its spin-off, 8 Out Of 10 Cats Does Countdown, as well as TV Heaven, Telly Hell.
On Thursday, Channel 4 will air the comedian’s stand-up special, Sean Lock: Keep It Light at 10pm, followed by a classic episode of 8 Out Of 10 Cats Does Countdown at 11pm. A highlight reel of Lock’s performances on 8 Out Of 10 Cats Does Countdown will also be available on the All 4 streaming platform.
Tragic: It is not known what form of a cancer Lock had battled, but he previously made a full recovery from skin cancer which he blamed on over-exposure to the sun while working on building sites before he became a comedian
From building sites to adored comedian, Sean Lock’s journey to stardom
Sean Lock on stage at the ‘We Know Where You Live. Live!’ event at Wembley in June 2001
Born in Woking, Surrey, the comedy star left school in the early 1980s and began working on building sites but developed skin cancer, which he blamed on over-exposure to the sun. He made a full recovery and focused on a career in comedy.
One of his first professional TV appearances was in 1993, starring alongside Rob Newman and David Baddiel on their signature TV show Newman And Baddiel In Pieces.
He script-edited the 1998 BBC Two series, Is It Bill Bailey? and had his own show on BBC Radio 4 called 15 Minutes Of Misery, which was later expanded into TV series 15 Storeys High.
The show was set in a tower block and centred on a pessimistic character called Vince (played by Lock) and his flatmate Errol, played by Benedict Wong.
In 2005 Lock became a regular team captain on the panel show 8 Out Of 10 Cats, a role he held for 18 series.
Between 2006 and 2007 he hosted Channel 4 series, TV Heaven, Telly Hell, in which he invited celebrities to share their own selection of TV’s triumphs and tragedies. Guests on the show included Alan Davies, Johnny Vaughan, David Mitchell, Bill Bailey, Johnny Vegas and Nick Hancock.
Speaking at the time, Lock said: ‘I think one of my all-time favourite shows is Catchphrase with Roy Walker. I loved it. I used to like Roy’s restraint, because, for a comedian, the opportunity to take the mick out of some of the ridiculous answers could have been too hard to resist.’
Lock also appeared on panel shows including Have I Got News for You, QI, and They Think It’s All Over. In 2000 he won the gong for the best live stand-up at the British Comedy Awards.
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