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The actor and comedian John Bird has died aged 86.

Bird died peacefully on Christmas Eve, his representatives have confirmed.

Following news of his death, fellow comedian Rory Bremner paid tribute to “one of the greatest satirists”.

Together with the late John Fortune, Bird and Remner made up the trio of the TV series Bremner, Bird and Fortune.

The satirical show ran between 1999 and 2009. Across its 16 seasons, it was nominated for numerous Bafta TV Awards.

In the Sixties, Bird was part of the satire boom. He appeared reguarly in shows such as BBC’s That Was The Week That Was, which was presented by David Frost, and was one of the first BBC programmes to mock politicians.

The Nottingham-born comedian’s death follows almost nine years to the day after his co-star Fortune died at 74 years old (on New Year’s Eve 2013).

In a 2004 appearance on Desert Island Discs, Fortune described...

Tall Tales from the Badlands #3

“The Judgment of the People,” Written by Mark Wheaton; Art by Jerry Decaire

“Apologies,” Written by Sean Fahey; Art by John Fortune

“Rustlers,” Written by Robert Napton; Art by Franco Cespedes

“All Mine,” Written by Matt Dembicki; Art by Ezequiel Rosingana

“Where the Heart Is,” Written by Sean Fahey; Art by Ruben Rojas

Published by Black Jack Press

Weird West-style anthology is a perfect blend of Western, Sci-fi, and Horror

What ingredients make up this self-proclaimed “Weird West” anthology from Black Jack Press? It is made up of a hefty dose of Louis L’Amour mixed with an equally strong dose of Stephen King with a very light dash of The Twilight Zone. The writers who provide the scripts for this masterpiece collection were certainly inspired by this strange and unlikely mix of influences. However, each story in the anthology which mixes western and horror...

As the undisputed king of American gothic, Vincent Price holds a unique position regarding his association with British horror. From the mid sixties, nearly all his films were made in the UK, and while not as distinguished as The House of Usher (1960), Tales of Terror (1962) and The Raven (1963), they are not without interest. As an actor perfectly suited to English gothic, Price’s output includes two career-defining performances. In a nutshell, he had the best of both worlds.

Masque of the Red Death (1964)

The British phase of his career began with a bang. After directing all of Price’s Poe chillers for American International Pictures, Roger Corman wanted to give the formula a fresh approach by making his next film in England. Aip’s Samuel Z Arkoff and James H Nicholson had already produced several European films, so the next step was to establish a London base with Louis M Heyward in charge.

Here comes an exciting clip from "The Case of Mary Ford", the historic Greek Vampire tale by British director Ben Mole starring Branko Tomovic (Entity, The Wolfman), Yannis Stankoglou (Wild Duck), Dimitra Hatoupi and John Fortune (Match Point). The Clip shows the resurrection of the Vrykolakas, the Greek revenant sea vampire. Synopsis: Greece, 1910. Maria (Tamar Karabetyan) is a young Greek girl in a fishing village on the Black Sea. The villag…...

Comedian and actor best known for the satirical television show Bremner, Bird and Fortune

John Fortune, who has died aged 74 after a long illness, was a distinguished member of the Oxbridge generation of brainy comedians who turned British entertainment inside out in the early 1960s, along with his friend, college contemporary and writing partner, John Bird, as well as Peter Cook, Jonathan Miller, Alan Bennett, David Frost, Eleanor Bron and John Wells.

From his earliest days on Ned Sherrin's Not So Much a Programme, More a Way of Life, the successor in 1964-65 to the satirical television magazine That Was the Week That Was, through to the comedy shows with Rory Bremner in the 1990s and beyond, he was a fixture of barely surprised indifference, with a wonderful line in deflationary, logical understatement. Tall and gangly, with a warm and ready smile but a performance default mode of aghast,...

John Fortune has died at the age of 74.

The comedian - who found fame through his TV collaborations with John Bird and Rory Bremner - died peacefully with his wife by his side earlier today (December 31).

Fortune's agent Vivienne Clore said: "It is with great sadness that I write of the death of John Fortune this morning aged 74.

"He died peacefully with his wife, Emma and dog Grizelle, at his bedside.

"A renowned satirist, early work included contributions to Peter Cook's Establishment club and more latterly his work with long-term collaborator John Bird and Rory Bremner.

"He is survived by his adored wife, Emma and three children."

Rory Bremner paid tribute to the star on Twitter, saying: "I'm so sorry to let you know that my friend John Fortune died this morning. Lovely man, dear friend, brilliant & fearless satirist."

Fortune met Bird while studying at King's College, Cambridge and...

Thanks to the efforts of the Hero Initiative and comics fans and pros, Robert L. Washington was able to receive a proper funeral.

On Monday, June 25th, a funeral service was held for Robert L. Washington III in the Bronx borough of New York City, with a second service to come in Detroit, Michigan. The service was attended by various comic book creators, classmates, and friends from Robert’s various creative, work, and hobby circles.

Through the actions of Robert’s friends from Milestone Media, Inc. and his classmates from The Roeper School, The Hero Initiative was able to use all of your donations to pay for the service and provide Robert’s mother and two of his sisters with the means to travel from Detroit, Michigan to New York and give him a proper funeral.

via The Hero Initiative.

There were over 300 contributors to his cause, and we honor them below.

Chicago – A number of recent TV seasons hit DVD and Blu-ray right after Christmas, hoping to get a share of that gift card balance burning a hole in your wallet. If you have any left, we thought you might want to know the details so you can plan your assault of the local Best Buy or fill your Amazon cart. This is a Round-up feature that serves mostly as information, letting you know the synopsis, tech specs, special features, etc., but if we had to pick favorites, FX’s “Archer” rules. It’s the best of the bunch, but, honestly, all four should satisfy fans (even if “The Borgias” is annoyingly light on special features). Yes, even “Jersey Shore.”

All four titles were released on December 27th, 2011.

“Archer: The Complete Season Two”

Archer

Photo credit: Fox

Available: Blu-ray and DVD

Starring (the voice of): H. Jon Benjamin, Jessica Walter,...

A political radical, as an actor he excelled at playing tortured establishment figures

Corin Redgrave, who has died aged 70, was both a formidable actor and a strenuous political activist. But, while it is fashionably easy to suggest that his career was blighted by his political activities, I suspect his talent was intimately related to his radical political convictions. And, if he enjoyed a golden theatrical rebirth from the late 1980s onwards, it may have had less to do with politics than with his determination to inherit the mantle of his revered father. Before he suffered a severe heart attack in 2005, Redgrave's later years yielded some of his finest work.

Redgrave was born, in London, into the theatrical purple. His father, Sir Michael, was both a great classical actor and a popular film star; his mother, Rachel Kempson, was also a distinguished actor. Educated at Westminster school, Redgrave won a scholarship to King's College,...