Michael Parkinson, the iconic British host of a self-titled talk show who regularly interviewed the world’s biggest celebrities, died Thursday “in the company of his family,” BBC reported.
In a statement, Parkinson’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.”
“Parkinson,” his long-running talk show, was on-air from 1971 to 1982, and then again from 1998 to 2007.
His career spanned seven decades, in which he interviewed Paul McCartney, Muhammad Ali, Madonna, Helen Mirren, Elton John – by his own estimation, Parkinson has interviewed over 2,000 stars.
Parkinson was born in South Yorkshire, England, and began his career as a journalist for the Manchester Guardian and the Daily Express. During the 1960s, Parkinson moved over to TV presenting, where he hosted BBC1’s “Twenty-Four Hours.” His own show “Parkinson” which debuted in 1971 on BBC1, made him a household name.
In a statement, BBC director general Tim Davie described Parkinson as “truly one of a kind, an incredible broadcaster, and journalist who will be hugely missed.”
Davie continued that Parkinson was “the king of the chat show and he defined the format for all the presenters and shows that followed.”
