Ewen MacIntosh, an English actor best known for his role as Keith the accountant on the British version of The Office, tragically has passed away at the age of 50. The cause of death is unknown.
His representation, JustRight Management, put out a statement on X/Twitter about the news. “With great sadness we announce the peaceful passing of our beloved comedy genius Ewen MacIntosh,” the note read. “His family thank all who supported him, especially Willow Green Care Home,” a nursing home in Darlington, England.
With great sadness we announce the peaceful passing of our beloved comedy genius Ewen MacIntosh. His family thank all who supported him, especially Willow Green Care Home. There will be a private cremation for family & close friends soon & a celebratory memorial later in the year
— JustRight Management (@JustRightMgt) February 21, 2024
Many of his U.K. The Office co-stars also shared their condolences on social media. Ricky Gervais, the boss in the British version, and co-creator of the show, called MacIntosh's passing “extremely sad news.”
Extremely sad news. The very funny and very lovely Ewen Macintosh, known to many as ‘Big Keith' from The Office, has passed away. An absolute original. RIP. pic.twitter.com/Hhd3zkRVMs
— Ricky Gervais (@rickygervais) February 21, 2024
“The very funny and very lovely Ewen Macintosh, known to many as ‘Big Keith' from The Office, has passed away,” continued Gervais. “An absolute original. RIP.”
Fellow Office co-creator Stephen Merchant shared fond recollections of MacIntosh on Instagram. Merchant called him “a lovely and uniquely funny man.”
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“I fondly recall we asked him to improvise an out-of-office message,” Merchant continued, “and he was so hilarious we started writing more and more dialogue for him. He soon stole every scene he was in. A total one-off. A tragic loss.”
For fans of the American version of The Office, there would probably be no Kevin (played by Brian Baumgartner) without Keith. Macintosh memorably played Keith as a deadpan, un-self-aware, filterless, gum-chewing, office deejay-ing accountant whose only weakness as an employee, as he self-assessed, was “eczema”.
Ewen MacIntosh will surely be missed and remembered for his unique comedic talents, and tributes continue to pour in.