John Sessions death: Comedian dies aged 67

He was a regular on panel shows ‘Have I Got News For You’ and ‘QI’

Actor and comedian John Sessions has died, aged 67.

He was best known for his many appearances on TV comedy shows, including Have I Got News For You, Whose Line is it Anyway? and QI.

Sessions suffered a heart attack on Monday (2 November) and, according to his agent,  “died at his home in south London”. 

The comedian was born in Ayrshire, Scotland in 1953.

After studying alongside Kenneth Branagh at the Royal Academy of Dramatic Arts (RADA) in the late 1970s, Sessions began his acting career, appearing in films The Bounty and The Adventures of Pinocchio.

He voiced puppets in satirical series Spitting Image and went on to conceive cult comedy show Stella Street.

Sessions was renowned for his celebrity impressions, one of which memorably included his friend Alan Rickman.

His later film roles included Martin Scorsese film Gangs of New York,  Filth and Kray twins film, Legend, starring Tom Hardy.

Throughout his career, Sessions played two prime ministers: Harold Wilson in Made in Dagenham and Edward Heath in Margaret Thatcher biopic, The Iron Lady, opposite Meryl Streep.

Sessions also appeared in TV shows Skins and Outnumbered.

He made no secret of his political leanings. In 2013, he told The Independent he was “bored” of people calling Ukip “a bunch of racists”, and voiced his support for Nigel Farage.

Sessions was also vocal about his opposition to Scottish independence and, in 2014, was one of 200 public figures to sign a letter stating they hoped Scotland would vote to remain a part of the UK in that year’s referendum.

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He was outed as gay by the Evening Standard in 1994, after appearing in a production of My Night with Reg – Kevin Elyot’s play about London’s gay community in the mid-Eighties – at the Royal Court.

He recalled to The Guardian in 2017: “I was asked [by a journalist] very robustly: ‘Are you gay?’ I said: ‘Yes I am, but my parents don’t know and I don’t want them to find out by picking up a copy of the Evening Standard.’ The journalist said she thought I should tell them and outed me. My mother died unexpectedly six weeks later and my father quickly developed dementia. It was never mentioned.”

Sessions’ career also included several radio plays, audio book narration and roles in Shakespearean adaptations, including Branagh’s Henry V.

Broadcaster Danny Baker remembered him as “terrific company always and a true talent”.

The official QI Twitter account also paid tribute, commenting: “His incredible wit and encyclopaedic knowledge played a huge part in the show’s history and everyone at QI is deeply saddened to learn of his passing.”

Comedian Robert Webb mourned the death of both Sessions and Bobby Ball in recent weeks, tweeting: “Bobby Ball and now John Sessions! Two very different performers who both absolutely inspired and delighted me at different times. Lovely, funny men.”