Wisecracks about his nurses -- what else? -- are already reaching the outside world from the Devon hospital bed of Rik Mayall whose rapid recovery from his horrific "quad bike" accident is delighting his fans and friends.
None more so than Laurence Marks and Maurice Gran, writers of C4's hit series Mosley, who created the immortal Alan B'Stard for Mayall in The New Statesman -- and are now designing him a new persona.
"LoMo", as they are known in the trade, think TV detectives have become " tired, cynical, world-weary old farts". Says Gran: "They're all old-age pensioners, apart from Fritz, who's in urgentneed of psychiatric help.." The gumshoe they are inventing for Mayall will be "young, dashing and sexy, just like Rik" -- which should speed his recovery even more.