Ewen MacIntosh, who starred as Big Keith in The Office, has died aged 50.

MacIntosh's cause of death has not been confirmed, but it is believed he had suffered from ill health for a while. He was in hospital for a period in 2022. His friend Ed Scott said today: "Thanks to the incredible care and love provided by the wonderful medical staff and especially the nurses who all loved him when he brought a smile to their days."

Ricky Gervais has led tributes on social media, saying: "Extremely sad news. The very funny and very lovely Ewen MacIntosh, known to many as 'Big Keith' from The Office, has passed away. An absolute original. RIP."

MacIntosh played the scotch egg-loving accountant Keith Bishop in the hit sitcom, which ran from 2001 to 2003. His character, who worked at paper company Wernham Hogg alongside David Brent, showed little interest in the job, and made it clear he'd rather have been a DJ.

MacIntosh appeared as the character outside of the sitcom, including as part of Comic Relief and on an episode of Celebrity Juice.

TV channel Gold, which repeats the classic sitcom, said: "We loved him as Keith in The Office and were lucky enough to work with him over the years on the channel. Our thoughts go out to his family and friends at such a difficult time."

Aside from The Office, MacIntosh's TV and film acting credits include Lead Balloon, Toyboize, Miranda, Life's Too Short, The Lobster, Finding Fatimah, The Bromley Boys and Shed Of The Dead. One of his most recent roles was re-appearing alongside Gervais in After Life in 2021, meanwhile Hic, a short film he starred in, was published online last year.

MacIntosh also appeared as himself in shows such as Never Mind The Buzzcocks, and was a gag writer for various entertainment formats, often working on scripts as part of the group Navelgazing.