'A friend to us all''

Australian stand-up Dave Grant has died at the age of 50 following a ten-month battle with pancreatic cancer.

Fellow performers have been paying tribute to the long-standing Melburnian comic, who was a regular at comedy festivals and made numerous appearances on TV shows down under.

The father of three was a performer for 17 years, and was known for his kind words of encouragement and advice for newer comedians.

Brendon Burns said: ‘He took a lot of people under his wing when they were starting out, myself included. A great guy that touched pretty much everyone that's ever set foot on an Australian stage.’

Adam Richard said: ‘As an MC, you prayed for Dave Grant to be your headline act, because you knew that no matter how dire the gig was, no matter how many infuriatingly incompetent tryouts were stinking up the first two brackets, you were going to bring on the most consistently hilarious headline act any audience has ever seen.

‘He was generous with his time, his knowledge and his opinion. With a few simple words, he gave me more confidence than I would ever have been able to accumulate with even a lifetime of performance.

Meschel Laurie, the host of ABC TV show Stand Up!, blogged: ‘To my dear friend and mentor, Dave Grant. You MCed almost every gig I did during my formative years in Melbourne. You taught me that ten minutes was ten minutes and that a bad gig was no one's fault but mine.

‘You never received the recognition that so many of your proteges enjoy, but you are loved beyond measure. You will be achingly missed, and Melbourne comedy will never be the same.’

Many of the tributes came via the Twitter website, incuding:

Justin Hamilton: ‘RIP Dave Grant. You were truly a man amongst men, a friend to everyone no matter how big or small. I miss you. Thinking of his family.’

Geraldine Hickey: ‘A great and talented man that was instrumental in helping me do what I love.’

Courtney Hocking: ‘The world is lessened by the loss of Dave Grant. May we all keep to time and be as good and big hearted to one another as he was to us.’

Harley Breen: ‘An artist of the highest order. An inspiration, mentor and bloody funny bloke.’

Last month, Grant went missing moments before he was due to be taken to hospital, sparking a major manhunt, but was found hours later.

Published: 24 Jan 2010