Star of 90s TV show Bodger and Badger dies after cancer battle

Mr Cunningham played handyman Simon Bodger in the series and voiced his companion, a beret-wearing talking badger with a love for mashed potatoes.

He died of cancer at Royal Sussex County Hospital on Monday, his sister Tessa told the Press Association.

The show ran on the BBC from 1989 to 1999, when Mr Cunningham visited Blackpool’s Grand Theatre.

There, hundreds of children had a ‘mashing’ time as the stage became awash with potatoes following a matinee performance.

The show, which attracted an audience of more than 600, was part of a nationwide tour for school half-term.

“I think mash is today’s custard pie as it is very good for sticking,” he said at the time. “The image has been with us since the very first programme which we filmed about 10 years ago.”

Mr Cunningham, who read English at Cambridge University, also worked as a puppeteer in the Star Wars film Return of the Jedi.