When I was roused from my slumber by the sound of the Clue theme tune on the radio this morning, and realised that it wasn't 6.30pm on Monday evening, a terrible fear crept over me. I knew Chairman Humph had been in hospital, but that wouldn't warrant the Today programme playing clips from the now presumably erstwhile antidote to panel games. It was equally unlikely to be a tribute to Tim Brooke-Taylor finally winning a game of Mornington Crescent. Something was seriously wrong (yes, even more serious than Tim winning MC).

Humphrey Lyttleton is, tragically, an ex-Chairman. An ex-everything, in fact.

I was exceptionally fortunate to have recently seen him play the trumpet with his band at the Gala in Durham, and heard a recording of Clue in Sunderland a couple of years ago. They were the two funniest and most entertaining evenings I have experienced. Humphrey is (or rather, was) the wittiest of all raconteurs and an impressive jazz musician to boot.

Our thoughts at this time are, of course, with Samantha.