His work straddled the observational and the fantastical with a rare seamlessness, his everyman persona belying the madcap comedy mind at work behind the specs. The inventive lengths that Sean would go to in order to turn a couple of minutes of casual quiz show air-filler into extended, unfettered odysseys of comedy gold spoke to the brilliance of this much-loved comedian, who died today age 58 following a long battle with cancer. Or a wicker basket containing what he’d modestly describe as “total comedy”. Few set-up lines have unleashed such wild comedic digressions as “Sean, have you got a mascot?” The fundamental genius of 8 Out Of 10 Cats Does Countdown was encapsulated in the next – utterly unpredictable – few minutes, as Sean Lock reached beneath the desk and let his imagination run riot.
