Rob Brydon Joy Jones (née Brydon), was a school teacher, and his father, Howard Jones, was a car dealer. He grew up in Baglan, with his younger brother Peter (born 1973). Brydon was educated at two independent schools: St. John's School in Porthcawl, which Eddie Izzard also attended, and Dumbarton House School in Swansea until the age of 14. This was followed by Porthcawl Comprehensive School, where he met Ruth Jones (with whom he later worked in "Gavin & Stacey") and became a member of the school's youth theatre group. While at Dumbarton, he once stole the lunch money of fellow pupil
And the Band Played On he was eulogized by Cleve Jones, who said "Randy's contribution was so crucial. He broke through society's denial and was absolutely critical to communicating the reality of AIDS." Larry Kramer said of him, "He single-handedly probably did more to educate the world about AIDS than any single person." "And the Band Played On" was used as the basis for a 1993 Primetime Emmy Award-winning HBO television film of the same name. It was produced by Aaron Spelling, directed by Roger Spottiswoode, and starred Matthew Modine as epidemiologist Don Francis and Richard Masur as William Darrow at the Centers for Disease