SIR Michael Parkinson has died aged 88 after an incredible 50-year career interviewing the biggest stars.
The chat show king sat down with 2,000 celebrity guests after becoming a pioneer of the one-on-one interview format.
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Sir Michael Parkinson has died aged 88
His plain-speaking style helped garner a legion of fans and has been emulated by a string of famous interviewers in his wake.
A statement from Sir Michael’s family said: “After a brief illness Sir Michael Parkinson passed away peacefully at home last night in the company of his family.
“The family request that they are given privacy and time to grieve.”
Sir Michael, fondly known as Parky, was born in Cudworth, near Barnsley, South Yorkshire, in 1935.
He left school aged 16 and cut his teeth in journalism at the Barnsley Chronicle before being drafted for National Service.
After becoming the youngest captain in the Army, Sir Michael joined the Daily Express.
His big break on Fleet Street came after he was handed a weekly sports column in The Sunday Times in 1965.
Sir Michael moved from newspapers to television in the late 1960s when he was offered a role on Granada as a local reporter.
He remained at the broadcaster for three years before joining the BBC to work on the late-night news review Twenty-Four Hours with Cliff Michelmore.
After a brief return to Granada where he presented film review series Cinema, Sir Michael was offered his own show Parkinson by the BBC in 1971.
The format took off and made the presenter a star in his own right thanks to his down-to-earth interviews.
During the 11-year series, Sir Michael interviewed giants from the world of music, film and sport.
Notable guests included Muhammad Ali, David Beckham, David Bowie, Clint Eastwood, Tom Cruise, George Best and David Attenborough.
There was also an infamous interview in 1976 when Sir Michael sat down with entertainer Rod Hull, whose glove puppet Emu continually attacked the host – eventually causing him to fall off his chair.
Fellow guest Billy Connolly threatened: “If that bird comes anywhere near me, I’ll break its neck and your bloody arm”.
Sir Michael later joked that chat would go down as his most memorable thanks to “that bloody bird”.
Other unforgettable moments include Orson Welles telling Sir Michael to ditch his list of questions beforehand and Kenneth Williams’ four appearances – including his head-to-head with trade unionist Jimmy Reid.
There was also the notoriously frosty interview with Meg Ryan, who he made up with years later after she told him to “wrap it up”.
After the show ended in 1982, the journalist joined The Famous Five morning show alongside David Frost, Angela Rippon, Anna Ford and Robert Kee.
Sir Michael also hosted Good Morning Britain for five years and fronted a string of other popular shows, including Give Us a Clue, All Star Secrets and Parkinson One-To-One.
Along with hosting antiques valuation series Going for a Song in 1995, Sir Michael also enjoyed a comeback of Parkinson that featured a whole raft of modern celebrity guests.
The list included an interview with Tony Blair in 2006 – the first serving Prime Minister he sat down with – who revealed he would be judged by God for the Iraq war.
Sir Michael once revealed his most remarkable interviewee was Muhammad Ali and said the one celeb he wished he could have got on the show was Frank Sinatra.
In 2004, Parkinson moved from the BBC to ITV and ran for three more years until Sir Michael retired to pursue other interests.
He wrote Parky: My Autobiography in 2008 and hosted Parkinson: Masterclass on Sky Arts in 2012.
During his extensive career, Sir Michael has received a number of awards for his work.
These include a BAFTA, National Television Award and a knighthood in 2008.
In recent years, Sir Michael preferred to keep away from the limelight and only made a few appearances in public.
He was seen celebrating cricket umpire Dickie Bird’s 90th birthday party in April.
Sir Michael also appeared on Good Morning Britain in November 2022, where he discussed the art of interviewing.
Reflecting previously on his chat show, he said: “I had the best of it, in terms of the guests I could choose from…
“The older ones and the newer ones, and also the kind of television that was being shown in those days. It was bliss.”
Sir Michael lived in Berkshire with wife Mary, who he married in August 1959 and had three children with.
Tributes have already begun flooding in for the host, led by BBC director-general Tim Davie.
He said: “Michael was the king of the chat show and he defined the format for all the presenters and shows that followed.
“He interviewed the biggest stars of the 20th century and did so in a way that enthralled the public. Michael was not only brilliant at asking questions, he was also a wonderful listener.
“Michael was truly one of a kind, an incredible broadcaster and journalist who will be hugely missed.”
Sky Sports pundit Geoff Shreeves shared a picture with Sir Michael, writing on Twitter: “They say never meet your hero’s . 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.”
Comedian Stephen Fry said being interviewed by Sir Michael was “impossibly thrilling”.
He wrote: “The genius of Parky was that (unlike most people (and most of his guests, me included) he was always 100% himself. On camera and off. “Authentic” is the word I suppose.
“For one of the shows I was on with Robin Williams, a genius of unimaginable comic speed and brilliance. Now they’re both gone.
“One should get used to the parade of people constantly falling off the edge, but frankly one doesn’t. So long #parky.”
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Sir Michael was recently seen at Dickie Bird’s 90th birthday party in AprilCredit: Alamy
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The host interviewed some of Hollywood’s biggest starsCredit: Rex
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Sir Michael sits down with George BestCredit: Hulton Archive – Getty
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Muhammad Ali was one of his most notable guestsCredit: BBC
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Parkinson pictured with his wife Mary in 2008Credit: PA:Press Association
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His interview with Rod Hull and Emu became infamousCredit: BBC
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The interviewer was praised for his informal, chatty styleCredit: Rex Features
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