British writer and television producer Rob Grant has passed away at the age of 70. Best known for his work on sitcoms in the United Kingdom, he co-created the successful cult sci-fi show “Red Dwarf” alongside his then comedy-partner Doug Naylor.
His family confirmed that he died suddenly on February 25, leading to a flood of tributes from those who had worked with him across his long career in the entertainment industry.
Rob Grant Passes Away at the Age of 70
Grant’s family revealed that the comedy writer had died in a statement to “Red Dwarf” fan site Ganymede and Titan. It reads, “With much sadness, we have to announce that Rob Grant, co-creator of Red Dwarf, passed away suddenly yesterday afternoon (Wednesday 25th February 2026), a great loss to his family, friends and comedy fans across the world.”
He co-created “Red Dwarf” with Naylor and co-wrote 36 episodes of the sitcom. He left after the sixth series and no longer contributed to the television series after that time, although he has written several books based on the franchise and had planned more projects following the settlement of legal wranglings between himself and Naylor.
No cause of death was given and his family did not provide any further details outside of the initial statement.
It had only been announced a week earlier by Radio Times that Grant had written a prequel novel to the “Red Dwarf” series that is set to be released later this year, although it isn’t yet clear if plans will change due to Grant’s death.
Colleagues Pay Tribute to Rob Grant
His former writing partner Naylor paid a touching tribute to Grant on Instagram. He wrote,”I’m deeply saddened to hear of Rob Grant’s passing yesterday. It’s hard to take in the loss of someone who was such a significant part of my life for so many years.”
He continued, “I first met Rob when we were nine years old. We went to Chetham’s School of Music and later Liverpool University. We grew up making each other laugh long before there was an audience, and eventually found ourselves building something that neither of us could have imagined when we were schoolboys. I’ll always treasure those years of writing together and laughing so hard it hurt.”
Naylor concluded, “Creative partnerships are intense, driven by passion, conviction and strong personalities. But at the heart of ours was a shared love of comedy and a desire to make people laugh and we did, on a scale neither of us could have predicted. My thoughts are with Rob’s wife Kath, and all his family and friends. I will always be grateful for my time working with Rob and what we created together. RIP Smeghead! X #reddwarf”
Craig Charles, who starred in the sitcom as Lister, wrote on X, “Earlier today I was informed of the passing of @realrobgrant. I am in total shock. He was one of the funniest people I’ve ever met. A visionary. My heart goes out to his family and friends. The impact he and Doug had on the course of my life is immeasurable RIP ROB.”
Robert Llewellyn, who played Kryten, wrote on Threads: “Very sad news about Rob Grant, who, along with Doug Naylor created the long running comedy series Red Dwarf. He passed away on Wednesday, Rob was a very funny man with a talent for stinging reposts.”
