2016 is turning into a bit of a bad year for losing beloved British stars. So far, we've lost Bowie, Victoria Wood, Ed "Stewpot" Stewart, Paul Daniels, Terry Wogan, Ronnie Corbett - and now we have the sad news that Caroline Aherne has died, aged just 52.
She created the original "spoof chat-show host" in Mrs Merton - ostensibly a sweet little old lady, her acid tongue regularly tore strips off her guests...
...as well as one of the best comedies of the 90s, The Royle Family (co-starring Sue Johnston and Ricky Tomlinson):
With her "cool" credentials (she was married to Peter Hook of Joy Division/New Order, until that ended badly, and the Royle Family theme was recorded especially by none other than Oasis) and her shit-hot observational comedy skills, Miss Aherne was a bit of a legend; a one-off.
There'll never be another...
RIP Caroline Mary Aherne (24th December 1963 – 2nd July 2016)
