Tributes paid to Black Country stand up star Ian 'Sludge' Lees
"He was irreplaceable" - Warm tributes have been paid to legendary comedian and singer Ian ‘Sludge’ Lees.
The star had kept pub and club audiences laughing for more than six decades.
He was one of the old-school comedians who kept people laughing through a mix of one-liners and rude mother-in-law tales.
He died at New Cross Hospital on Monday night, just weeks after being diagnosed with cancer.
Obituary - Comedian Ian 'Sludge' Lee
Today, his manager of 40 years, Jake Elcock, led tributes to the comedian made famous by appearances on New Faces, The Comedians and Tiswas.
“He had all the ingredients – the face, the outrageous outfits, the routine and the timing. Sludge was simply a very funny man,” he said.
“He had a locker full of jokes which kept going in a car journey all the way from Wolverhampton to Scotland. He was irreplaceable, a legend. His death is a sad loss.”
Sludge was born and grew up in Cannock, first appearing as a singing act at pubs in the town aged just 10.
He first appeared on television a year later on talent show Carroll Levis Discoveries, performing as a singer. It led him on to join several Midlands bands.
In the late 1970s he started work as a comedian and got his big break in 1992, becoming part of Granada TV’s The Comedians.
He was a regular fixture at venues in the Midlands and won Midlands’ Comedian Of the Year twice. He also starred in the Black Country Night Out annual tour.
The loyal Wolves supporter moved from Cannock to Ocker Hill in Tipton 20 years ago before moving to Middletown, near Welshpool in Powys.
