Gordon Angus Deayton is a British actor, writer, musician, comedian and broadcaster. He is best-known for his role as Victor Meldrew's long-suffering neighbour Patrick Trench in the comedy series One Foot in the Grave and as the former presenter of the satirical panel game Have I Got News for You, a job from which he was dismissed in October 2002 after a second round of tabloid allegations about his personal life.Deayton read languages at New College, Oxford, where he was recruited into the Oxford Revue, performing with them at the Edinburgh Festival Fringe. This led to the creation of the parody band The Hee Bee Gee Bees in 1980, with the songs written by Richard Curtis and Philip Pope. Their best-selling single "Meaningless Songs" (plus the B-side "Posing in the Moonlight") was a parody of the falsetto style of countless disco hits by the Bee Gees.The foundation of Deayton's career was a parody of British local radio stations, Radio Active, broadcast on BBC Radio 4 between 1981 and 1987, which he both co-wrote and performed in. It transferred to television as KYTV between 1989 and 1993. Deayton presented a tribute to Radio Active and KYTV colleague and friend (and long-time BBC producer) Geoffrey Perkins for BBC Radio 4 on 4 October 2008. During this period, Deayton was also frequently seen appearing as a straight man alongside Rowan Atkinson. He starred with Atkinson in two separate roles (a pool attendant and a man on a park bench) in one of the earliest episodes of Mr. Bean and appeared opposite Atkinson in the Black Adder episode "Born to be King" (1983) as one of the Jumping Jews of Jerusalem, a kind of medieval variety act. He also appeared regularly in comedy sketches on Alexei Sayle's Stuff.In 1990 Deayton was cast as the Meldrews' neighbour Patrick Trench in the British suburban sitcom One Foot in the Grave and was selected as the host of Have I Got News for You. Deayton's suave manner as host of Have I Got News for You led to his being nicknamed "TV's Mr Sex", by a Time Out listings writer. In May 2002, the News of the World newspaper published allegations about his private life suggesting that he had taken cocaine and had sex with prostitutes. He was ridiculed by Paul Merton and Ian Hislop in the following episode of Have I Got News For You, but was allowed to continue as presenter. Deayton took the lampooning good-naturedly, beginning the episode with: "Good evening and welcome to Have I Got News For You, and this week's loser is presenting it." After a second round of allegations emerged in the papers that October, Deayton was fired as presenter two episodes into the new series.After being forced out of Have I Got News for You, he continued to work on other projects including a reunion of the Radio Active cast in a new episode broadcast in December 2002. He starred in BBC comedy Nighty Night which was shown from January 2004. A few months later, he made a return to TV presenting with ITV's cookery reality show Hell's Kitchen and then the light-hearted quiz Bognor or Bust. In January 2006 he hosted an ITV show based upon self-help videos called Help Your Self.
Supporter of the English soccer team Manchester United.
His mother, Susan Deayton, was an employee at Bletchley Park where the Nazis Enigma code was cracked during World War II.
His one time partner Stephanie De Sykes wrote at least two U.K. Eurovision Song Contest entries which makes his programme "Not Another Eurovision Song Contest" somewhat ironic.
Was dropped as host of the popular satirical news quiz, "Have I Got News for You" , after 11 years at the helm following a UK newspaper scandal.
Has one son, of whom Richard Wilson is godfather.
People in the media should thank me. My absence has given lots of work,to people who are never heard of for decades. - on his replacements on,Have I Got News For You,"When one door closes another one falls on top of you. " (after being,fired from his job on "Have I Got News for You").
