The co-creater of Danger Mouse, animator Mark Hall, has died of cancer aged 74.
Hall, who co-founded Cosgrove Hall - responsible for hit cartoons such as The Wind in the Willows and Chorlton and the Wheelies - passed away in the early hours of Friday at his home in Manchester.
Operations director of his company, Cosgrove Hall Fitzpatrick Entertainment, Adrian Wilkins told BBC News Hall had "a lifetime of achievement" in the world of animation and was "one of life's gentlemen."
Hall, alongside Brian Cosgrove, enjoyed international success with their animated productions which also included Danger Mouse spin-off Count Duckula, Jamie and the Magic Torch and Cockleshell Bay.
The pair met at Manchester's Regional College of Art in the late 1950s. They went on to work as graphic designers at Granada TV but Hall left in 1971 to form Stop Frame Animation. He was joined a year later by Cosgrove.
Danger Mouse - voiced by Only Fools and Horses actor David Jason - was undoubtedly their biggest hit. The show, which celebrated its 25th anniversary in 2006, attracted an average audience of 3.5 million when it was first shown in the UK on ITV. It has since been seen in more than 80 countries.
Jean Flynn, who worked at Cosgrove Hall for more than 30 years told How Do: "Mark Hall was so well loved and was such an inspirational and fantastic boss.
"He fostered such encouragement and creativity and had a terrific generosity of spirit; helping hundreds of people start out in the animation industry.
"He had such a love for life and brought so much life into Cosgrove Hall. His love for life sparked all his ideas and characters and he was completely and utterly passionate about telling animation. He will be dearly missed."
WATCH: A montage of Danger Mouse clips...