Shame the number of high profile people taking their own lives lately. Fame doesnt bring happines that is for sure.

It is a shame that we as a society can't be a little more open to suicide to prevent this. The media are under the misconception that a spate of copycat attempts will be made.

The rate is around 17 people per 100,000 for men and 4.7 people per 100,000 for women. In SA, around 162 people per year suicide - more than the annual road toll. In fact, the actual number of suicides is under reported due to the "shame" of it all.

Most people think they will solve their problems by travelling down that path. It doesn't. Suicide is not a spontaneous thing, most people give signs prior to doing something, we just need to look for those signs before they act.

Dead! wtf

wow

unreal

I had the privelage of working with this lovely person a long time ago on SAFM and AM. Such a gentle soul who will be much happier in a place just right for him now. My thoughts and love to his family

Rich was a good friend to a few posters on here as we were lucky enough to go to school with the good man.

He was one funny bugger from the get go.

His take on Richie Benaud was always a classic especially when "Richie" decided to start reciting King Lear in the middle of an exam.

Funny how that same guy later turned up on Rove doing Richie Benaud.

He would fly himself on weekends to see the Late Show recorded live because he revered Mick Molloy and Tony Martin so much.

Amazing that he would not only work with them years later but in a lot of peoples eyes made them even better comics.

Sad day........ Fitz covering it pretty well....

I too have met Richard and always admired his Comedic writing ability.

I was astonished when I heard the news the morning.

RIP Richard.

So Sad :(

How sad to think of this funny, sweet man being in such a terribly dark place and not able to find the help he needed. It feels like I have lost someone I know. I listen to Get This Podcasts over and over again and love Richard's contributions. I will miss him and feel so sorry for his friends and family. Rest easy Richard.

It wasn't meant to end like this. We were going to enjoy The Richard Marsland show into our dotage. Smug in the knowledge that he was the brightest talent to enter the media in decades and we were lucky enough to work with him in the early days. Our hearts go out to his family and friends. Vale Richard Marsland.

I adored the gentle humour of this scruffy, huge-hearted, intelligent bloke. It was obviously hard for him in the end, but I wish he'd hung in there for just a little while longer - enough to relize how valuable he was to the world. And how valuable he was to those that knew and loved him - not just as an entertainer, but as a human being who radiated warmth, acceptance, and generosity of the heart. I wish he'd hung on long enough to relize he was, like all of us, struggling to live our lives the way we want to. You know, it's our perfections which make us love ourselves, but it's our imperfections that connect us to everyone around us. He made so many of us happy. I wish he had seen himself the same way that we saw him. I wish he had asked for help.