Ronnie Golden

Ronnie Golden, born Tony De Meur, was a British singer, guitarist and comedian who bridged late-1970s new wave rock and the first wave of alternative comedy. He founded and fronted the Fabulous Poodles, then reinvented himself on the London stand-up circuit, appearing in The Young Ones and later touring and broadcasting with Barry Cryer. He died on 27 September 2026 after a sudden heart attack. Friends said he died peacefully. Colleagues remembered a witty songwriter, a tireless gigging musician and an entertainer who still worked the clubs into 2026.

As Tony de Meur he was lead vocalist, guitarist and harmonica player of the Fabulous Poodles, formed in the United Kingdom in 1975. The band grew out of an earlier Poodles line-up and settled as de Meur with Richie Robertson, Bobby Valentino and Bryn Burrows, after pianist Bob Suffolk left. Known for quirky stage antics and comic lyrics, often written with artist-poet John Parsons, they released three studio albums between 1977 and 1979, including Fabulous Poodles (produced by The Who's John Entwistle), Unsuitable (with their best-known songs "Mirror Star" and "Chicago Boxcar (Boston Back)") and Think Pink. They appeared on The Old Grey Whistle Test, toured Britain and Europe, and in 1979 supported acts including Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers and the Ramones in the United States. An American compilation, Mirror Stars, introduced their early material to US listeners. The group wound down around 1980; a later reunion followed in 2019.

Within weeks of the band's end, de Meur took the comedy-music slot at The Comic Strip in Raymond's Revue Bar and adopted the stage name Ronnie Golden for stand-up. He became a regular at the first Comedy Store in London and on the early alternative comedy circuit alongside Rik Mayall, Alexei Sayle, French and Saunders and others. In 1982 he appeared in the second episode of BBC Two's The Young Ones as Buddy Holly hanging upside-down in a parachute. He later fronted the R&B and soul band Ronnie and the Rex, wrote songs and sketches for BBC Radio 4's The Right Time, and for years worked as a musical double act with Barry Cryer, including Nine Lessons and Carols for Godless People at the Bloomsbury Theatre and Hammersmith Apollo in December 2009, broadcast on BBC Four in January 2010. He described himself as "Standup*Scribbler*Screamer*Strummer".

Tributes after his death named his partner Grace and recalled Edinburgh Fringe seasons, songs such as "Freedom Pass", and a career that never settled into one lane. Beyond The Joke editor Bruce Dessau noted that only the previous week Golden had been writing publicly about hearing difficulties. Performers including Bennett Arron, Steve Furst, Charmian Hughes and Gavin Webster remembered a colleague who was generous with stories and still improvising on stage late in life.