Sir Michael Parkinson has passed away aged 88, his family have confirmed. The legendary broadcaster, journalist and author died peacefully at home on Wednesday.
His family released a short statement which read: "After a brief illness Sir Michael Parkinson passed away peacefully at home last night in the company of his family. "The family requests that they are given privacy and time to grieve."
The TV personality was best known for his hugely popular chat show Parkinson, which began in 1971 and ran for 11 years before rebooting once again in 1998, and is believed to have over 2,000 guests on the show including Princess Anne, Sir Elton John and Madonna.
Fans took to X, formerly known as Twitter, to share tributes, with one person writing: "They say never meet your heroes . I did and held Sir Michael Parkinson in even greater esteem. Consummate pro, brilliant interviewer and warm genuine down to earth proper journalist. The undisputed king of chat shows. Condolences to his family." Another person added: "Sir Michael Parkinson. Simply the Best. Anyone who was anyone was interviewed by him. What an amazing career he had. Thoughts with his family."
While Michael's cause of death has yet to be confirmed, the star was previously diagnosed with cancer in 2013, and was given the all-clear two years later. He explained: "I soon learned there is so much more to cancer than simply having access to the best treatment.
"The experience showed me how important it is that more support is provided to address the emotional, physical and practical needs of cancer patients and their loved ones. When I was diagnosed with prostate cancer, I was shocked. But the doctors were very positive, and I soon had a good treatment plan in place which put me at ease." He went on to become a patron of Yorkshire Cancer Research.