Mike Agnew RIP News Posted by Ian Symes on 8th July 2025, 17:34 The very sad news has reached us that Mike Agnew has passed away. As the Production Manager for Red Dwarf Series 2 and III, he was one of the driving forces behind the show’s early success, and provided us with so many memorable behind the scenes stories. Mike started out as an actor, before moving behind the scenes as Rowan Atkinson’s tour manager. He broke into television after meeting Paul Jackson on the first ever Comic Relief, becoming part of his and director Ed Bye’s trusted team on Craig Goes Mad in Melbourne and Don’t Miss Wax. Joining Red Dwarf for its second series, Mike made a big impact on both sides of the camera, famously standing in for Craig Charles during the location shoot for Thanks For The Memory, after the actor sped off to attend the birth of his child. He made further notable appearances in Series III, as the auto-destruct voice in Bodyswap, Kevin the Polymorph, and most famously “Git in Pub” in Backwards, where you can also hear him shouting “!noitca” at the end/start of the fight scene. But it was behind the scenes that he made the biggest impression, with his Production Manager role encompassing floor management, location scouting, and assistant directing. He recounted some of his war stories in the It’s Cold Outside and All Change DVD documentaries; highlights include the tale of a mishap with a drape during a crucial moment of the Kryten shoot, and of the time Danny and Craig went missing on location for Backwards, which culminated in Ed Bye having to physically restrain him. More recently, he joined Rob, Ed, Paul and Dona Distefano for the Quarantine Commentary on Thanks For The Memory, and was interviewed for Dave’s Red Dwarf: The First Three Million Years. Immediately post-Dwarf, Mike was floor manager for such programmes as The Jack Dee Show, Knowing Me Knowing You With Alan Partridge and TFI Friday. Having got his first taste of directing on a scene in Timeslides, he then graduated to a mixture of producer and director roles, across such shows as The Big Breakfast, Don’t Forget Your Toothbrush, Tarrant on TV, You’ve Been Framed, Dog Eat Dog, Friends Like These and The Great Garden Challenge. Mike was a well respected figure in the television industry, and he leaves a big hole in the Red Dwarf family. Our thoughts and condolences go out to all those who knew him.
Mike’s interviews were one of the best things to come out of the DVD era. Always loved hearing stories from him.
Really sad to hear this news. His interviews on both the Series 2 and III documentaries were brilliantly funny. Such a lively, funny and passionate bloke. He was around at some really important moments for the show. And what a terrific career. RIP.
RIP. Undoubtedly an important figure in the early days of Red Dwarf. Here’s the first part of his Flibble interview on TOS, which is typically funny and interesting and features an excellent story about Bruce Springsteen https://reddwarf.co.uk/features/interviews/mike-agnew-1/
Oh that is sad news. Even in my relatively short acquaintance with Red Dwarf (5yrs, out of its 35yr history) it was abundantly clear he was a very important part of the show and like the rest of you, really enjoyed his participation in behind-the-scenes features and the lockdown commentary. My condolences also to all those who knew him.
Thank you all, I’m his brother-in-law, and the family would be so pleased to see your comments. He had a great send off last Friday; tears and laughter. Big Red Dwarf fan here, and so annoyed I didn’t know him during the original series, I’d have been pestering him for a studio pass!
RIP As with other aspects of the behind the scenes I found Mike’s contributions very funny and memorable. His contributions to the peak era of the show are massive. Not least that his one job later had to be done by more than one person!
Sad news – his contribution to the show was huge, and it was great seeing him talk on the behind the scenes material.
Sad news, this. He always came across as a decent and funny guy. His behind-the-scenes insight on RD was always interesting, and as one of the key figures in the early days, he’ll be missed. R.I.P.
Such sad news. I worked with Mike during his many trips to America. Not only was he a brilliant director, he kept everyone surrounded in laughter and joy. When my wife and I started dating, we went backpacking around Europe. Mike picked us up at the airport, and kindly let us spend our first two nights at his home. LandRoly, please give our best to his family. Mike spread laughter and joy, and our lives were better for having known him.
