Comedian who died on stage ...as the audience laughed on
‘We thought it was part of the act’
A COMEDIAN died on stage during a gig minutes after joking about having a stroke, leaving the audience thinking it was all part of his act.
Ian Cognito, 60, reportedly had a heart attack while performing and is said to have sat on a chair and ‘laid back for five minutes’ before anyone realised something was wrong.
Audience members unaware that he was seriously ill thought the long silence was part of his routine and continued to laugh, witnesses said.
Paramedics were called but the comedian was pronounced dead at the scene.
John Ostojak, 58, who was at the gig with some colleagues, said that Cognito, who was the third and final act of the evening in the intimate venue, had put on a ‘really funny and energetic performance’ before falling ill at the gig in Bicester, south-east England.
‘He had been coming out into the audience with a drink in his hand and had been using his chair as a prop throughout the gig,’ said the local sales manager.
‘He put his drink down, sat down quite normally and gently while still telling jokes and then he just leaned back. We all just thought it was part of the act and carried on laughing and applauding.
‘We thought he would suddenly just jump back up but then his arms fell by his sides and he just lay there for about five minutes. There were shouts from people in the audience like “give him a prod” and two girls behind me said they were off to the toilet because he was taking so long.
‘We didn’t realise he was unwell until the compere came out and shouted his name, then he and some others started performing CPR right there on the stage.
‘He hadn’t shown any signs of ill health before then, quite the opposite, and had even cracked a joke about being in a coma then waking up speaking Welsh just minutes before.
‘It really left us numb, to go from enjoying a comedy routine to seeing the poor man dying in front of us. I couldn’t remember his final joke. But he was a terrific performer; they say “leave them laughing” and he really did.’ The comic’s death has haunting parallels with that of legendary comedian Tommy Cooper, who also fell fatally ill on stage in front of an oblivious audience who continued to laugh and applaud.
Ian Cognito, whose real name was Paul Barbieri, was known for his unpredictable behaviour and once claimed that he had been banned from more comedy clubs than anyone in the UK. He never achieved mainstream success but he enjoyed cult status among comedy fans and was held in high esteem by his contemporaries, many of whom paid tribute.
Jimmy Carr tweeted: ‘Veteran stand-up comedian Ian Cognito has died on-stage – literally. The audience thought it was part of the act. Died with his boots on. That’s commitment to comedy.’