Michael Parkinson (1935-2023) 

17 August 2023 tbs.pm/80066

Broadcaster Michael Parkinson has died after a short illness. He was 88.

A fixed point in the history of British television, there are plenty of obituaries online and we’ll not attempt to compete with the resources of the BBC or The Guardian.

Instead, we recommend these two articles about the most important points of his long career (chatshow host notwithstanding).

SEEN AT 6.30 is an in-depth look by Transdiffusion’s Andrew Hesford at the news magazine programme where ‘Parky’ got his television start: as the Yorkshire correspondent for Granada’s Scene at 6.30 – including the time he famously (pretended) to get Granada’s ident tattooed on his back.

A decade and a half or so later, he was one of the “Famous Five” (originally the “Big Six”) hired by the new TV-am to interview and present on weekends. In HOW THE NEW LOOK WILL CHANGE ITV by Thompson Prentice for NOW! magazine in 1981, the author speculates on what the new breakfast contractor will be like. Of course, of the Famous Five, only David Frost would survive the rocky first few months of what appeared to be a doomed experiment.

He is survived by his wife, presenter Mary (neé Heneghan) and their three children.

Nos da, Michael.