BBC two decades later, in 2004. But what did the show's young stars do next? Here, 40 years after it first aired, we've taken a look at how their lives and careers progressed.A true legend of British comedy, Rik Mayall was arguably the biggest star of The Young Ones cast.
He met Adrian Edmondson, as well as co-writers Ben Elton and Lise Mayer at university. He and Edmondson formed a double act and, along with other comedians, launched their own comedy club, The Comic Strip, in the early 1980s.Rik, described as an "energetic post-punk" comedian, appeared in hit and acclaimed shows including Blackadder, The New Statesman and Bottom, which he created and starred in with Edmondson.In the 1990s, he also starred in films such as Drop Dead Fred and Carry on Columbus and Guest House Paradiso, a feature-length Bottom spin-off.
Rik married make-up artist Barbara Robbin in 1985, eloping with her to Barbados while still in a relationship with writing partner Lise Mayer.
The pair went on to have three children. In 1998, he was involved in a serious quad bike accident near his home in Devon. The bike ended up turned over on top of him but he remembered nothing of the accident.
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