Inbetweeners actor Blake Harrison and Geordie Shore's Vicky Pattison are among some big-name UK TV personalities to have paid tribute to Friends star Matthew Perry following his death.
Perry, 54, who played Chandler Bing on Friends was found dead in his Los Angeles home on Saturday (October 28) after reportedly drowning, according to the Los Angeles Times and celebrity website TMZ.
Tributes have been flooding in for the actor, who also starred in a number of films including The Whole Nine Yards alongside Bruce Willis, since his death.
UK TV stars lead tributes for Friends actor Matthew Perry
A number of UK TV stars have joined a host of big-name celebrities from across the world in paying tribute to Perry.
Blake Harrison, who plays Neil on the Inbetweeners, said the Friends actor was a “huge inspiration” and indirectly encouraged him to “pursue acting”.
Matthew Perry was a huge inspiration to me growing up. My friends & I would come into school having memorised his sarcastic one-liners, speech patterns, even Chandler’s dance. He brought me so much joy & without knowing it he encouraged me to pursue acting.
— blake harrison (@blakeharrison23) October 29, 2023
Thank you ❤️ pic.twitter.com/ERtgJNQbJB
Harrison, posting on X (formerly Twitter), said: "Matthew Perry was a huge inspiration to me growing up.
“My friends & I would come into school having memorised his sarcastic one-liners, speech patterns, even Chandler’s dance.
“He brought me so much joy & without knowing it he encouraged me to pursue acting. Thank you.”
Media personality Vicky Pattison, known for appearing on the reality show Geordie Shore, said that Friends is always on in her house and paid tribute to the man she remembers as a “brilliant friend”.
On Instagram Pattison, 35, wrote: “The one where we all lost a friend…
“I don’t even know what to say. Friends is constantly on in our house, it’s been a huge part of my life.
“Like the theme tune suggests – there for me when it hasn’t been my day, my week, my month or even my year.
“It makes me smile after a long day and comforts me when I’m down- just a constant ray of sunshine in what is increasingly becoming a sadder and scarier world.
“Friends is a little bit of escapism, a ray of light.. and today, it feels like that light just got a little dimmer.
“Matthew Perry was the perfect Chandler.
“And I’m sure to those who loved him he’ll be remembered as many brilliant things – but to me, he’ll always be the man who looked after Joey, who raised the chick and the duck, who learned to love through the kindness of his friends and gave Monica the happily ever after she deserved.
“In short, I’ll be remembering him as a brilliant friend. As that’s what he felt like to me.
“RIP Matthew Perry. A true legend. Rest Easy Chan Chan Man.”
Lucy Davis, from the UK version of The Office, said she had worked with Perry for nine months previously and he had made a "great impact" on her.
I had the honor of working with this man for 9 months on Studio 60 on the Sunset Strip. He was as funny off screen as he was on screen. He was really kind to me: I had one week where I was having difficulty with something at work and he came up to me and told me not to worry… pic.twitter.com/vsO8nJ4lrv
— Lucy Davis (@RealLucyDavis) October 29, 2023
In a post to X, she said: “I had the honor of working with this man for 9 months on Studio 60 on the Sunset Strip.
“He was as funny off screen as he was on screen. He was really kind to me: I had one week where I was having difficulty with something at work and he came up to me and told me not to worry because he had my back.
“He was generous with his compliments to me when we acted together."
She added: “Knowing him for just those 9 months has remained a golden memory for me…. Thanks for all the laughs Matthew. You made a great impact on me.”
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