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Richard Ayoade

The Cambridge-educated son of a Nigerian father and Swedish mother, Richard Ayoade first came to prominence starring in and co-writing the 2000 Edinburgh Fringe show Garth Merenghi's Fright Knight with Matthew Holness, winning the Perrier Award for its sequel, Garth Merenghi's Netherhead, the following year. The show transferred to Channel Four in 2004 as Garth Merenghi's Darkplace, before spawning the spin-off 80s chat show spoof, Man to Man with Dean Learner, fronted by Ayoade's 'smut-peddler' character.

Appearances in The Mighty Boosh and Nathan Barley were followed by his highest profile role to date in Graham Linehan's sitcom The IT Crowd, playing socially inept tech support worker Moss, a role he reprised for an unaired US adaptation in 2009.

Establishing a parallel career as a music video director for the likes of The Arctic Monkeys, Kasabian and The Yeah, Yeah, Yeahs, he directed his first film, the coming-of-age comedy-drama Submarine in 2010, and his second, The Double, a nightmarish, dystopian comedy-drama, loosely based on Fyodor Dostoevsky's novella, in 2014.

Richard Ayoade involved in car crash

Another vehicle smashes into his SUV

Richard Ayoade has been involved in a car crash, with a Renault smashing into his SUV.

Two pedestrians were also knocked down in the incident at East Dulwich, South East London.

According to The Sun, which carries a picture taken soon after the accident, the 49-year old – newly announced as taking part in the next series of Taskmaster – was seen getting out of his vehicle clutching his neck .

Both pedestrians were taken to hospital, with a witness telling the paper: ‘The Renault came speeding along the road and hit a woman — she ended up on the other side of the roundabout.

‘It smashed straight into the side of his vehicle and then managed to hit another woman.’

The London Ambulance Service confirmed that they treated two women at the scene before taking them to a major trauma centre’ – adding that they did not suffer life-changing or life-threatening injuries.

The Met Police are investigating.

Ayoade’s agent declined to comment.

Published: 15 Jun 2026