jblum ([info]jblum) wrote,
@ 2008-04-26 23:31:00
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Humphrey Lyttleton RIP
Humphrey Lyttleton, jazz trumpeter (who inspired "Lady Madonna") and broadcaster extraordinaire, host of BBC Radio's antidote to panel games I'm Sorry I Haven't A Clue, died the other day.

He wasn't able to make the first recording of the latest tour season of ISIHAC, so he sent a recorded message: "I'm sorry I can't be with you today as I am in hospital... I wish I'd thought of this sooner."

In character to the last. I've lost count of how many evenings Kate and I have been lulled to sleep by his ruthless deadpan. So sadly the lovely Samantha will never again be able to sit on his right hand... We'll miss you, Humph.

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[info]flyingsauce
2008-04-26 04:07 pm UTC (link)
Nice. [info]communicator also has a good tribute.

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[info]jblum
2008-04-27 12:32 am UTC (link)
And I think [info]khalinche put it really well: "Humphrey Lyttleton finally reached Mornington Crescent yesterday..."

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[info]brewsternorth
2008-04-27 01:56 am UTC (link)
[info]loneraven had some delectable "alternative definitions" from ISIHAC in her retrospective. I'll have to look at some of the other words.
Ah, what a guy.

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[info]alawston
2008-04-26 09:56 pm UTC (link)
I saw him live once - he opened for Radiohead at their Oxford South Park gig. Well, Beck was there doing an acoustic set, but it was Humph I remembered.

A man who had Louis Armstrong and the Beatles as fanboys - I'll miss him desperately each time I pass through Mornington Crescent.

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[info]daibhid_c
2008-04-27 01:06 pm UTC (link)
There was a classic ISIHAC on Radio 4 this lunchtime (still available on Listen Again) and there's a tribute programme on Wednesday at 900 (although the online schedule hasn't been updated).

Most of my favourite people on Radio 4 seem to be dying: Humph, Linda Smith, Alan Coren. I feel like I did when I was a kid and Roald Dahl and Jim Henson died within a year of each other.

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