British comedian and actor Rik Mayall, perhaps best known to American audiences for playing the title character in the absurdist cult film Drop Dead Fred, has died at age 56, the Daily Mirror reports.
In his home country of the United Kingdom, Mayall was well known for a series of over-the-top comedy TV shows, most notably the early 1980's cult hit The Young Ones, in which he played an awkward, left-wing poser living with three other stereotyped and obnoxious college students.
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