PLYMOUTH, England (April 12, 1998 2:25 p.m. EDT http://www.nando.net) - British actor and comedian Rik Mayall was "making progress" on Sunday, three days after suffering serious head injuries in a quad bike accident, a hospital spokeswoman said.
Doctors at the hospital in Plymouth, southwestern England, said they were "happy with his progress," although Mayall remains in intensive care.
The hospital spokeswoman added that Mayall's condition was "looking more hopeful" and added that he had spent "a comfortable night."
"He is almost through the critical initial 72-hour period of waiting for the brain to stop swelling," she said.
Mayall was flown unconscious to hospital by police helicopter after the crash at his country retreat in south Devon on Thursday.
It is understood that the quad bike fell on top of him as he rode across a steep field.
His wife Barbara came out to see why the engine had stopped, and discovered him trapped underneath and unconscious.
Mayall's wife, who is at her husband's bedside, said Sunday: "We think he is OK."
After starting out at London's Comic Strip, Mayall appeared regularly on TV in "Saturday Live," "The Comic Strip Presents...," "The Young Ones," "Bottom" and "The New Statesmen."