Comedian Bob Mortimer has said he is “very, very sad” after the death of Ted, the dog who starred in Mortimer And Whitehouse: Gone Fishing.
Ted first appeared in the popular BBC show during its third series in 2020 and quickly became a hit with fans, being given a lifetime achievement award during the show’s 2025 Christmas special, as he appeared alongside Mortimer and fellow comedian Paul Whitehouse.
Mortimer said: “So very, very sad. Lovely Ted, the best companion and the greatest little chum. Going to miss him so much… and away boss.”
Whitehouse added: “Bye bye, Ted, old friend. He wasn’t a dog, he was a species all of his own. He’s gone to the great briefcase emporium in the sky. We will really miss you mate.”
Ted, who has been credited as the author of two books, Pawtobiography and Pup Fiction, is set to make his final appearance in the show during its upcoming ninth series.
Lisa Clark, the series’ executive producer and Ted’s owner, said: “Ted was a much-loved family pet as well as a treasured companion to Paul and Bob on Gone Fishing.
“He took fame in his little stride and loved nothing better than messing around on the riverbanks, nicking Jammie Dodgers from Bob and bait from Paul.
“He will be sorely missed both at home and on screen. We’ll never forget him.
“He is survived at home by Bo the Briard.”
Ted was rescued from a dog’s home in Surrey in the Spring of 2013 when he was about six months old, and went to live with Clark.
The BBC Two series began in 2018, and sees Whitehouse and Mortimer discuss life while fishing. It has been nominated six times for a Bafta TV award.
The programme has been shot across the UK and Ireland including in Norfolk, Donegal, the River Dee in North Wales, and Dumfries and Galloway.
Whitehouse previously admitted they originally pitched the show to bosses as a “factual series”.
“That’s how we sold it,” he told The Independent in 2020.
“We’ve got this show and we’ve both got heart disease, so with a bit of luck, the jeopardy is that one of us will drop dead on the riverbank, and that’s TV gold. So far it hasn’t happened. We keep dragging it out.”
Mortimer added: “I’m aware we are meant to be making a television programme so I’ll go over to Paul, who doesn’t really want to speak to me, and I’ll say something like, ‘Have you ever got down on your back and looked underneath a horse?’
“It wasn’t our intention to make people laugh, but because we’re both w*****s we can’t resist showing off a bit. If we’d intended to be funny, though, I don’t think we’d have dared turn up without a script.”
