Steve Brown, touted as British comedy composing's "one-of-a-kind talent," who worked with famed "jokesters" like Harry Hill, Steve Coogan, and Lenny Henry, has recently passed away at the age of 66.
His agent, Vivienne Clore, posted of his passing on X (formerly Twitter) and said that the cause of death was lung disease. In the post, it wrote: "Devastated to share the news that our much-loved client Steve Brown has passed away."
British composer, lyricist, record producer and arranger, Steve Brown, known for his collaborations with famed duo Ant & Dec. Photo taken at the United Kingdom on 2011.
Laughs and Melodies: Steve Brown's Expansive Career
Brown's early career gained traction after his songwriting stint for BBC Radio 4's sketch show, "In One Ear."
From then on, the composer would then establish an almost decade-long role as a composer for the British satirical TV show, "Spitting Image," starting from the late '80s until the '90s.
He also portrayed the satirical bandleader character "Glenn Ponder" in Steve Coogan's parody talk show "Knowing Me, Knowing You With Alan Partridge." The two would go on to be frequent collaborators in later years, including for two tours in the UK.
During this period, Brown also wrote for and made repeated appearances with Rory Bremner in a couple of UK tours and on Bremner's satirical BBC show surrounding Irish politics called "The Rory Bremner Show."
In addition to this, the comedy composer also worked on BBC 2's "Dead Ringers," playing the briefly appearing role of "Noel Gallagher." Brown also became an MD for famed UK-based impressionists Ronni Ancona and Alistair McGowan.
Brown's creativity extended beyond comedy gigs, as he also composed for several children's shows like "Playaway," "Play School," and "My Parents Are Aliens."
Arguably his most frequent collaborators are the British comedy duo Ant & Dec, even composing the theme song for their their show on Children's BBC. Later on, Brown and the duo also worked together on "Saturday Night Takeaway," as well as on a SMTV Live program.
Brown's Theatrical Works
Outside of TV, Brown also dived into the world of musical theatre and collaborated with Harry Hill for the 2013 "I Can't Sing!: The X Factor Musical" production, which held its inaugural show at the London Palladium.
Brown and Hill also worked together on the musical comedy stage show "TONY!: The Tony Blair Rock Opera," which premiered at Park Theatre in London before transferring for limited runs during the 2023 Edinburgh Festival Fringe alongside a UK tour.
Brown's genius also reached the prestigious theatrical row that is West End, with the musical "Spend Spend Spend."
The comedy composer is currently survived by his two sons with his former wife and Ded Ringers star Jan Ravens, who each took after one aspect of his career, with musician Lenny Brown and standup comic Alfie Brown.
He remarried in 2010 to actress Deborah Cornelius and lived alongside his stepdaughter, Manon.
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