This information is taken from the "British Comedy Guide"

It is with great sadness we report that prolific writer and producer Bill Dare died over the weekend, following an accident whilst he was overseas. No further details are known at this time, his agent confirmed.

Bill Dare Jones (to give his full name) was the son of actor, writer, and wit Peter Jones. In his mid-60s, he was one of British comedy's great but often unsung influencers, championing new writing and performing talent through a range of comedy series. Working primarily in radio he was behind many hit shows including Dead Ringers, The Now Show, and The Mary Whitehouse Experience.

From producing Week Ending and creating The Mary Whitehouse Experience to helming the tenth to seventeenth series of the hit ITV sketch show 'Spitting Image', his work was hugely influential, critically lauded, and popular with audiences.

The original radio incarnation of Dead Ringers will mark its 25th anniversary later this year, having become one of BBC Radio 4's most successful and long-running comedy formats. His most recent work was the sitcom The Island for Unusual Productions, which is currently mid-way through its first series.

In a statement, the JFL Agency said: "Bill was a truly legendary producer and writer, and his comedy instincts were second to none. He made Dead Ringers into a national institution for the BBC, due to mark its 25th anniversary this year. But Bill's creativity was unbounded - sketch shows, sitcoms, entertainment formats, novels, stage shows - he created them all, and brought great pleasure to an untold number of viewers and listeners. He was also a great champion of talent - both writing and performing - and he will be remembered for working with the best of his generation at the same time as creating opportunities for the next."

His multiple and varied accolades include winning a BBC Audio Award for "Please Use Other Door" in 2023, a radio sketch show format he devised specifically to give early writing and performing credits to new comic talent.

Julia McKenzie, Comedy Commissioner for BBC Radio 4 said: "I am so terribly sorry to hear this tragic news and my thoughts are with Bill's wife, family and friends. Bill had been a huge part of Radio 4 comedy for decades, as a writer and producer, and listeners will have heard his legendary name at the end of many of their favourite shows.
"He was a comedy obsessive, and very instinctive about making the funniest choices when it came to writing, directing and editing. He cared so much about his work that in the production booth during Dead Ringers you'd see him crouched over the script, utterly focused on the show. Dead Ringers was on air over many momentous political events, including several general elections and Brexit, which always necessitated writing overnight, and every time he nailed the comedy, as well as the emotional dimension which made a lot of his satire so powerful. He was funny and very dry in person, amusingly cynical when he needed to be, and always pushed to keep the comedy he made, particularly satire, spiky. I've known and worked with him for 18 years and like many I can't believe he has gone. He will leave a big hole in the comedy world and in our hearts."

Richard Morris, Creative Director of Comedy and Entertainment at BBC Studios Audio, says: "Bill was a legendary figure in the comedy world and we, his friends and colleagues in radio will miss him hugely. Not only did he create and develop so many of Radio 4's most popular comedy shows - from The Now Show to Dead Ringers - but he was also a great source of creative encouragement to so many new writers and performers whom he supported taking their first steps in the industry. We'll miss the sharp wit and wisdom he brought to every production he worked on."

Bill was a graduate of the University of Manchester where he studied English and Philosophy.

In 2011 he created Brian Gulliver's Travels, a satire about someone visiting other worlds, which also became a successful book. He once joked in an interview, "I got to put my philosophy degree to good use, and not many philosophy graduates can say that!".

Dare is survived by his wife, Lucy, and daughter Rebecca.