Mr Ammiano, whose first fame had been as a performer at a homosexual comedy club he helped to found, is a rallying figure for many of the more radical elements in San Francisco.

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Mr Collier had been a gunner during World War II and made his comedy debut in 1948 when a performer at Hull's Perth Street Club failed to show up and he agreed to fill in.

BBC: Norman Collier's funeral attended by TV friends

Following the ascent of alternative comedy in the late 1980s, the performer largely returned to his roots in stand-up, and was performing hundreds of shows a year as recently as 2008.

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