An inquest has been opened into the death of comedian Gareth Richards after a car crash.

Richards died on April 7 after surviving the crash on the M2 in Kent on March 27.

The married father of two had been a stand-up comedian since 2004, featuring at the Edinburgh Fringe 10 times and on a variety of TV and radio comedy programmes.

He co-hosted on Absolute Radio with Frank Skinner and Emily Dean for two years.

His inquest was opened on Tuesday at West London Coroner’s Court and adjourned so police could interview a lorry driver involved in the crash.

A post-mortem examination found that Richards died of head injuries.