Ronnie Golden, the musician turned comedian known for playing Buddy Holly hanging upside down in an early episode of “The Young Ones” and for voice work on “Spitting Image,” died at home on Saturday, Sept. 26, 2026, at 78. His real name was Tony De Meur.
Golden died while his partner, film producer Grace Carley, was out walking their dog. Carley has now given a fuller account of his last day and of attempted resuscitation, writing under a tribute post.
“We had a lovely lunch in the garden – lamb chops and confit chickpeas from an Ottolengi recipe- and a cheeky glass of Rose – which he didn’t even finish. I went out to walk the dog and came back exactly 40 minutes later to find him just gone. The NHS kicked in within minutes and worked themselves tirelessly to bring him back, but he was gone,” she wrote.
A statement from Carley confirmed the death. She gave no cause and described it as sudden and unexpected. She posted her original announcement Monday, Sept. 28. “Without any fuss or bother, he simply slipped away yesterday afternoon while I was walking the dog,” she said.
Tributes From the Comedy Circuit
Carley invited his friends and colleagues to share their memories, and replies arrived quickly from across the British comedy circuit.
Musical comic Steve Gribbin wrote: “Such sad news about the death of comedy legend, very funny act, excellent musician and all-round good fella Tony De Meur aka Ronnie Golden.”
Gribbin added in his tribute: “Skint Video played a gig with him in 1984 at Banana Cabaret at The Bedford Arms in 1984, when he had just appeared on Boom Boom Out Go The Lights on TV, and he was kindness itself.”
Gribbin said he had looked forward to seeing Golden each year at the Comedians’ Christmas Party, and that he last saw him in late May at the birthday party of Paul Ricketts. He sent his sympathies to Carley and the family.
New Zealand comedian Jarred Christmas, commenting on a Comedy Cellar Instagram post announcing the death, wrote: “I bloody love Ronnie Golden. RIP you legend xx.”
Comedian Charmian Hughes said she was devastated. She first saw The Fabulous Poodles while at St Andrews University, shared bills with Golden for decades and called him a true comedy friend. Everyone had been left stunned by the news, said alternative comedy pioneer Jenny Lecoat, who added that Golden would not be forgotten and had been a significant figure in her life for more than 40 years.
Comedy Store Player Richard Vranch recalled a hugely talented performer and writer who was also a fine storyteller over a pint. Ronnie And The Rex, he said, played a set at his wedding, and the two of them once appeared together in a striptease act called Hunx. Peter Grahame, who runs Downstairs At The King’s Head in Crouch End, said the loss was still sinking in and that he felt as though he had known De Meur forever, and he sent his thoughts to Carley and to Golden’s family and friends.
Bandleader Before Stand-Up
Before comedy, bandleading was De Meur’s trade. The quirky pre-new wave group The Fabulous Poodles was his creation, founded in 1975, and he fronted it as lead singer and guitarist. The band appeared on “The Old Grey Whistle Test,” released three albums, toured with Meat Loaf, Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers and The Ramones, and served as Chuck Berry’s backing band. Their 1978 U.S. album “Mirror Stars” climbed the Billboard album chart to No. 61.
Around 1980 the Poodles disbanded, and the alternative comedy circuit gained Ronnie Golden as De Meur reinvented himself. London’s Comedy Store hosted him both solo and as part of The Comic Strip, on bills with performers including Rik Mayall, Ade Edmondson, Dawn French, Jennifer Saunders and Alexei Sayle. In later years he fronted the R&B and soul group Ronnie And The Rex. He worked regularly with the late comedy writer Barry Cryer, and the two appeared together at a Nerdstock gig put on by Robin Ince.
Screen Credits Across Four Decades
On “Spitting Image,” which 15 million people watched at its peak, his impersonations took in musicians Mick Jagger and Roger Daltrey across the satirical show’s original 1980s run. Its 1986 novelty track “The Chicken Song” featured him too. In episode two of the BBC sitcom “The Young Ones,” he played Buddy Holly, dangling upside down from the ceiling, still in his parachute, opposite series stars Rik Mayall and Ade Edmondson.
He made an early television appearance in 1983 on the Channel 4 show “Stomping On The Cat,” performing his song “Drinking At Home,” and also appeared in “Pushing Up Daisies” and “The Lenny Henry Show.” Reported credits also include his 1982 screen debut in “The Young Ones,” followed in the 1980s by “Interference,” “Who Dares Wins,” “Girls on Top,” “Lenny Henry Tonite,” “The Fourth Protocol” and “Saturday Live.” He appeared as himself in 1991’s “Barf Bites Back!” and “The World Stands Up,” and in the 2010 special “Nerdstock: Nine Lessons and Carols for Godless People.” His last credit was the 2014 mockumentary “Voices Thrown Silent.”
