A tight 5: September 4

FRANK CARSON died penniless – at least in the UK – according to his will. Probate records released yesterday show that the comic, who died in February last year at the age of 85, left £8,013 of assets, which were wiped out by liabilities and debts. But at the time his will was drawn up in October 2010, Carson had a holiday home in Spain and interests in two houses in Dublin, that are not believed to be covered by his British will, the Daily Express reports.

COLLETTE JOHNSON, who appeared in the first two series of black sketch show The Real McCoy in 1991 and 1992, has died at the age of 52. Johnson, whose characters included miserable Jamaican newsreader Collette, was diagnosed with cancer of the spine earlier this year. She was also in a double act for a few years from 1989 with fellow Real McCoy star Llewella Gideon called Short, Sharp and Shocking.

Michael McIntyre is to embark on his first tour of Australia. He has announced five arena dates in Perth, Adelaide, Brisbane, Melbourne and Sydney in November.

NETFLIX is to premiere Russell Peter’s next stand-up special, Notorious, and his documentary series Russell Peters vs. The World from October 14.  Peters said: ‘I've always prided myself on being outside the box and slightly ahead of the curve, which is why Netflix is the perfect fit for me.’ Notorious was filmed in Sydney in March and will be available from 8.01am UK time. Several of his previous stand-up shows are already available on the on-demand service.

SIMON PEGG, Nick Frost and Edgar Wright were named comedians of the year in GQ magazine’s annual awards yesterday. Russell Brand won the ‘oracle’ award.

Published: 4 Sep 2013