COMIC Rik Mayall walks unsteadily into a hospital 12 days after the accident that almost killed him. He looked bruised and drawn after the flight from Devon to London.
The Mirror traced the little girl whose lucky charms won Rik's heart when he emerged from a coma. "We'll be in touch," his wife Barbara promised Lara Stone, 10.
I'M THE LITTLE CHARMER WHO HELPED POOR RIK GET BETTER
THE little girl who sent lucky charms to comic Rik Mayall as he lay in a coma said yesterday: "It would be
unbelievable to meet him."
Ten-year-old Lara Stone - tracked down by The Mirror - added: "If I saw him I would give him a big hug because I am glad he is getting better. I'm glad my little lucky charms and letter seemed to have helped him get better."
Lara wrote to Rik - one of her heroes - when he was unconscious in hospital after a quadbike accident at his country home. When he came round her gifts and long letter full of pictures won his heart. And his wife Barbara told newsmen: "I think the lucky charms that Lara, a young fan, sent have done their work."
But Barbara lost the schoolgirl's address among the hundreds of letters, cards and faxes that poured in to Rik's hospital room - until The Mirror came to the rescue.
We traced Lara to her home not far from the couple's farmhouse and passed her phone number to Barbara - who vowed: "We'll be in touch."
As Rik moved to a London hospital, Lara said: "I couldn't believe it when my gran Lola told me she'd read in The Mirror about his accident.
"We had no idea he had a home near us and I didn't want him to die."
She told how she spent hours making the charms and writing her letter.
"First I made him a bead as a lucky charm to wear around his neck, from a kit of special moulding plasticine.
"I baked it in the oven and it was all different colours in a marble effect.
"For a laugh I also got hold of my bottle of Lucky Lottery Bath Foam, which has lots of little numbered balls inside it.
"I chose my lucky number, 18, and took that little ball out and included it in the letter.
"I wrote him a long letter telling him how I was a huge fan and had been watching videos of his films and programmes since I was about seven.
"I love Bottom and The Young Ones and I once wrote away and got a photograph back of Rik as the wicked imaginary friend of a little girl in the film Drop Dead Fred."
Surrounded by six cats, a new "sausage dog" puppy called Cherry and her chameleon Fizz, she added: "I told him all about my 51 pets, about our horses, goats, pigs, hens, rabbits, guineapigs and stick insects.
"I closed my letter with six big kisses and told him I would love him to be my imaginary friend.
"I suppose I did go on a bit but I never dreamed he would pick my letter out from all the others for a mention."
Lara covered her letter with get well soon stickers and a rainbow, asked her gran Lola for the hospital address and walked along a country lane to put the bumper package in the village post box.
Drama fanatic Lara said she wants to be an actress - or a vet. She goes to a weekly drama group as well as starring in her primary school productions.
She said: "I am in a play, set on a bus, in which I am a fussy, overhelpful nurse. And I played one of the three French hens in a take-off of the 12 days of Christmas.
"I was dressed up as a French maid.
"I like putting comedy into things but I also like horror films. They don't scare me at all.
"What I like best about Rik is the way he uses his face. It is like rubber.
"He only has to move one little muscle and he can look really wicked or funny. But I can't curl my top lip like he does."
Her mum Toni said: "The only Rik Mayall comedies she hasn't seen yet are The New Statesman - but I think she will appreciate them more when she is older.
"But she does have a very sophisticated sense of humour, probably because of her acting."
Rik was playing with his children Rosie, 11, Sydney, nine, and Bonnie, two, when his 600lbs quadbike toppled over on top of him at his farm in East Allington, Devon, 12 days ago.
He was flown to Plymouth's Derriford hospital and spent days on life support machines.
Finally he regained consciousness and asked his wife: "Why are those b*******s always sticking needles into me?"
Yesterday he was well enough to leave - joking to nurses: "I hope I won't see you soon." He was flown to a London hospital for tests and treatment.
As he walked unsteadily in, helped by Barbara, she said: "He is really doing remarkably well. His recuperative powers seem excellent.
"But it is still a very anxious time even though all the signs are extremely favourable. I'm just keeping my fingers crossed.
"The next two weeks are very important. We will know a lot more soon. What Rik needs now is complete rest."
Rik's agent Aude Powell warned that his full recovery may take time.
She said: "Obviously you don't go through something like that and simply pop back to full health.
"We should know more within three days or so. The swelling in the brain needs to go down.
"The absolutely crucial and essential thing is peace and quiet in this recovery period.
"But I have been speaking to his wife and she says he is doing very very well.
"It has been a very stressful time for Barbara.
"At least with Rik back in London the children can go to school and it will also be easier for them to visit him."
A medical source said that until the swelling on his brain went down and drugs wore off doctors could not test faculties like short term memory.