Sad news today as Ewen MacIntosh, one of the stars of the hit series The Office passed away at 50 years of age.
Ewen MacIntosh became popular playing Keith Bishop on the legendary British comedy, which eventually made its way over to the USA, but in a slightly different context to the British version due to subtle cultural differences between US and UK office life and personalities.
His deadpan delivery as that monotonous paper company accounts manager made the character iconic.
The Office, with its cringe interactions and anti-climactic humor, pioneered new territory in comedy when it first dropped. Set in the soul-crushingly boring offices of Wernham Hogg Paper, the show hilariously skewered workplace culture. As Keith, MacIntosh transformed bland office small talk into sheer hilarity with his subtle reactions and comic timing. His emotionless criticisms of office life spotlighted the inherent absurdity.
Lots of everyday folks saw bits of their own lame office jobs in Keith. This realness made the show – and MacIntosh – blow up. Beyond his Office character, MacIntosh has an infectious enthusiasm IRL that makes fans swoon over him even harder.
With his deadpan snarkiness, Keith colorfully highlighted the diverse personalities crowded into offices everywhere. He gave The Office a sense of authenticity that just hit differently compared to other sitcoms.
UK Advertising – He has always been in the nation’s heart!
His popularity also led to him becoming a popular face in UK TV commercials. Just take a look at how he advertises Just Eat and Pret in the YT video above. It’s hilariously staged, but at the same time, it doesn’t feel staged because it is Keith from The Office acting out the personality we know and love.
Other UK TV commercials Ewen MacIntosh aired across the UK include being the face of a humorous advert campaign for moneysupermarket.com, the popular price comparison site known for its often amusing ads. he also showed up in an ad for global fast-food giant KFC, as the chain looked to promote its signature fried chicken. Additionally, he popped up in a spot for the UK soft drink brand Apple Tango, and for Dotty Bingo in which he stands in background as a husband getting ready for a workout!
MacIntosh basically made his own fame, and that was knocking his breakout Keith role out of the park in a hugely influential comedy series. He’ll always be best known for that star-making turn on The Office. By channeling workplace boredom into comedy gold, MacIntosh and his character will forever live in fans’ hearts despite the sad news that has passed away.
The news broke that Ewen MacIntosh, who comedy fans will remember as the hilarious slacker Keith from the original British version of The Office, has died at age 50. His management group shared PUBLICLY on February 21st that he passed away peacefully in a care home.
From the statements, it sounds like they’ll have a small funeral first just for family and close friends. But later this year, they want to throw a big public memorial bash to celebrate his life. I mean, the dude was wicked funny – his scenes always had me rolling in laughter. He also did tons of UK comedy shows over the years, even more recent ones like Miranda.
So lots of his co-stars took to social media to share memories and love for Ewen. Ricky Gervais, who created the OG Office, called him an ‘absolute original.’ Others like Miranda Hart focused more on what a truly kind, caring guy he was – not just the laughs he gave audiences. It’s clear he meant a lot to so many, especially Ricky Gervais who worked with Ewen all those years on The Office before the inevitable, which was when Ricky Gervais announced the UK version would be coming to an end.
When you watch a series and connect with the character, you always look out for the actor in other shows. Although I have never met him personally, I have heard so many positive testaments to his character in what we would call real life – not just as Keith.
We here at Flimzie would also like to offer our deepest condolences to his family and friends. He made so many people chuckle, and despite his passing at what is quite a young age, he contributed so much to the world of TV, so also a big thank you for all those laughs!