Sir Michael Parkinson, former talk show host and journalist, has died

Published

2 years ago

August 17, 2023

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Broadcaster Sir Michael Parkinson has died at the age of 88.

His agent said he died peacefully at home in the company of his family on Wednesday night, following a brief illness.

Sir Michael, a former journalist, was one of British television’s most famous faces through his talk show Parkinson, which initially ran on the BBC from 1971 to 1982. He relaunched the show in 1998 before it moved to ITV in 2004, remaining on air until he retired the programme in 2007.

Over more than 800 episodes, the TV host affectionately known as Parky interviewed some of the world’s most high-profile figures – including Muhammad Ali, Sir Elton John, Tom Cruise, Helen Mirren and George Michael – and helped make comedian Sir Billy Connolly a household name.

Reaction as ‘greatest interviewer of our time’ dies – updates

Despite his long and illustrious career, it was his 2003 interview with Meg Ryan that went down in history as one of his most memorable shows.

The chat show king was faced with a stony-faced Ryan, who delivered one-word answers as she promoted her poorly received erotic thriller The Cut.

More than 20 years later, he offered an apology to the actress and admitted neither of them were on “top form”.

He was also famously attacked by Emu when the puppet appeared on the chat show sofa next to Rod Hull, and wrestled him to the ground. The star would often joke that he would always be remembered for “that bloody bird”.

Michael Parkinson obituary: The host A-listers wanted to share their secrets with

BBC to friends and interviewees – celebrities pay tribute

As tributes were shared following the announcement of his death, many remembered him as “the king of the chat show”.

Director-general of the BBC, Tim Davie, said in a statement: “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.”

Writing on X, formerly known as Twitter, BBC broadcaster Nick Robinson said: “He was the greatest interviewer of our age who owned Saturday night TV for year after year.”

Meanwhile, former BBC News anchor Simon McCoy posted: “Simply the Best. Anyone who was anyone was interviewed by him. What an amazing career he had. Thoughts with his family.”

Comedian Stephen Fry described being interviewed by Sir Michael as “impossibly thrilling” as he shared his memories.

“The genius of Parky was that (unlike most people… and most of his guests, me included) he was always 100% himself,” he wrote on Instagram. “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.”

‘The coolest thing I ever saw pre-show’

BAFTA and Culture Secretary Lucy Fraser also shared tributes, with Ms Fraser describing the star as a “broadcasting giant who set a gold standard for the television interview”.

Comedian Eddie Izzard remembered Sir Michael as the “king of the intelligent interview”, while British singer and actress Elaine Paige described him as “legendary”.

Sharing a picture of the pair on X, she wrote: “Such very sad breaking news that Sir Michael Parkinson has died. Have known him for many years, sang on his TV chat show & attended many events with him.

“A legendary interviewer that will be remembered as the best of his profession. We will never see his like again.”

Comedian Dara O Briain shared a story of Sir Michael doing “the coolest thing I ever saw pre-show” during one of his three appearances on the “proper showbiz” programme.

“I was standing with the guests, waiting for the show to start,” O Briain wrote. “Michael arrived, chatted away to us, not a nerve in sight, when the band started playing the theme tune. Michael paused, smiled and said ‘They’re playing my tune’ and walked straight out and started the show. Lovely.”

Comedian and actor Matt Lucas also shared a tribute, remembering Sir Michael as “a titan” of television.

Broadcaster and author Gyles Brandreth described the broadcaster as “one of my heroes”, saying it was a privilege to have known and worked with him.

“They were chat shows, of course – but they were mjuch (sic) more than that: they were truly engaging conversations that brought out the best in his guests,” he said.

“And what an array of guests. ‘Parky’ was one of my heroes – and a lovely guy. A privilege to have known and worked with him.”

Minute’s silence at cricket match

The world of sport also mourned Sir Michael’s death, with Yorkshire County Cricket Club and Barnsley FC both sharing tributes.

Sir Michael was a lifelong fan of cricket, with his childhood dreams of playing for Yorkshire dashed when he left school aged 16 and instead began working at a local paper.

The cricket club announced a minute’s silence before play on Thursday, while Barnsley FC said the club had “lost one of its favourite sons”.

Monty Python star Eric Idle, who was interviewed by the TV host in 1982, wrote on X: “Farewell Parky. A great Yorkshireman and cricket fan and a lovely interviewer to be with.”

Life before TV – and how he rose to fame

Sir Michael was an only child who grew up in a council house in the coal mining village of Cudworth, near Barnsley, South Yorkshire. His father was a miner, and would take his son down the pit when he was a teenager to put him off working there.

After leaving school, he went on to work at a local paper, later joining the Manchester Guardian and then the Daily Express.

He got his break in TV as a producer at Granada, moving to Thames TV before landing his chat show Parkinson at the BBC.

He also had a short-lived term at TV-am as part of the original presenting line-up alongside the likes of Angela Rippon and David Frost, and appeared on the shows Give Us A Clue, one-off drama Ghostwatch and Going For A Song.

On the radio, he hosted Desert Island Discs on Radio 4 as well as his own sports shows on Five Live.

The star received an honorary doctorate in 2008, alongside cricket umpire and his good friend Dickie Bird, at the Barnsley campus of Huddersfield University.

He was also knighted by the late Queen at Buckingham Palace that same year, and said of the accolade: “I never expected to be knighted – I thought there was more chance of me turning into a Martian really.”

In 2013, Sir Michael revealed he was being treated for prostate cancer – but said he had no intention of stopping working.

He had three sons with wife Mary, who he married in 1959.

UK

Unlicensed Botox-like injections spark outbreak of disease many doctors have never treated

Published

12 hours ago

July 26, 2025

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Unlicensed Botox-like injections spark outbreak of disease many doctors have never treated

A woman who thought she was being injected with Botox was left unable to swallow and doctors thought she had suffered a stroke – after she contracted a life-threatening illness from a potentially illegal product.

Nicola Fairley is one of dozens of people who have developed botulism linked to unlicensed anti-wrinkle injections.

She had the procedure done with her regular beautician after winning a Facebook competition for three areas of “Botox”.

“Within two or three hours my forehead and the sides of my eyes had started to freeze,” Nicola says.

“At first I thought ‘amazing’, that’s what I wanted – then it just carried on.”

Nicola was eventually sent to A&E in Durham, where she met several other patients who all had similar symptoms.

Doctors were stumped. “They thought I’d had a stroke,” she says.

“We all had problems with our eyes, some of us with our breathing. I couldn’t swallow – they put me on nil by mouth because they were worried I would choke in the waiting room.”

It turns out all of the patients had recently had anti-wrinkle injections containing botulinum toxin.

Health officials believe they were imported, illegal products.

Botulism – the disease they caused – is so rare many doctors never see it in their entire careers.

It can cause symptoms including slurred speech and breathing problems, and can be deadly.

The disease is so unusual, and so many cases were coming in, that doctors exhausted their stocks of anti-toxin and had to ask hospitals as far away as London to get more.

The UK Health Security Agency has so far confirmed 38 cases of botulism linked to cosmetic toxin injections, but Sky News has been told of several more.

The outbreak began in the North East but cases have now been seen in the East of England and East Midlands as well.

There are only a handful of legal botulinum toxin products in the UK – of which Botox is one.

But cosmetic treatments are largely unregulated, with anyone allowed to inject products like fillers and toxins without any medical training.

Cheap, illegal products imported from overseas are easily available.

‘It’s the Wild West’

Dr Steven Land runs Novellus Aesthetics clinic in Newcastle upon Tyne. He worked for decades as an emergency medicine doctor before moving into aesthetics.

He says he has been warning health officials of an outbreak for years.

“It’s the Wild West,” Dr Land told Sky News.

“Because anyone can do this, there is a lack of knowledge around what is legal, what’s not legal, what is okay to be injected.

“These illegal toxins could have 50 units, 5,000 units or rat poison – there could be anything in there.”

Dr Land showed us messages that he says he gets on a weekly basis, from sellers trying to push him cheap, unlicensed products.

They advertise “limited time offers” and cheap bundles on toxins imported from overseas. He calls them “drug dealers”.

“They are preying on the lack of knowledge among non-medical practitioners,” he says.

Consultations on how to regulate the aesthetics industry have been ongoing for years – but so far, no changes have been introduced.

The UK government now says it does plan to regulate certain procedures, but it’s not said how it will do this, or when.

“What will it take?” Nicola says. “One of the women we were with did almost die – she had to be resuscitated.”

Nicola’s beautician has stopped responding to her messages, so she says she still has no idea what the product was “or how much of it is in me”.

She doesn’t know how long her symptoms will last, but just hopes she will eventually recover.

UK

Trump issues warning to leaders as he arrives in Scotland

Published

15 hours ago

July 26, 2025

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'Immigration is killing Europe': Donald Trump issues warning to leaders as he arrives in Scotland

Donald Trump has landed in Scotland for a four-day trip including high-level meetings – praising Sir Keir Starmer as “a good man” but calling illegal migration a “horrible invasion” that is “killing Europe”.

Crowds gathered at Prestwick Airport in Ayrshire amid a major security operation for the US president’s visit.

Mr Trump told reporters: “I like your prime minister. He’s slightly more liberal than I am… but he’s a good man… he got a trade deal done. It’s a good deal for the UK.”

The pair are expected to discuss potential changes to the UK-US trade deal which came into force last month.

Trump left Air Force One to head to Turnberry, one of his Scottish golf courses. Part of the trip will include the opening of another course in Aberdeenshire, billed as “the greatest 36 holes in golf”.

“There’s no place like Turnberry. It’s the best, probably the best course in the world. And I would say Aberdeen is right up there,” the US president said.

“Sean Connery helped get me the [planning] permits. If it weren’t for Sean Connery, we wouldn’t have those great courses,” he added.

During the trip, President Trump will also hold discussions with Scotland’s First Minister John Swinney and EU Commission President Ursula von der Leyen, who is keen to secure a trade deal with the US.

Mr Trump told reporters there was “a good 50-50 chance” of an agreement with the EU but added there were “maybe 20 different” sticking points.

EU diplomats say a deal could result in a broad 15% tariff on EU goods and half of the 30% Trump is threatening to impose by 1 August.

The US president touched on illegal immigration and gave European leaders a stark warning.

“You better get your act together or you’re not going to have Europe anymore. You got to get your act together,” he said.

“But you’re allowing it to happen to your countries and you got to stop this horrible invasion that’s happening to Europe. Immigration is killing Europe.”

He was also scathing about the installation of wind turbines across the continent.

“Stop the windmills. You’re ruining your countries,” he said. “It’s so sad. You fly over and you see these windmills all over the place, ruining your beautiful fields and valleys and killing your birds.”

Domestically, Mr Trump faces the biggest political crisis of his second term in office over his administration’s handling of files linked to disgraced financier and sex offender Jeffrey Epstein, who died in prison in 2019.

He faced another round of questions after stepping off Air Force One.

“You’re making a big thing over something that’s not a big thing. I’m focused on making deals, not on conspiracy theories that you are,” he said.

Mr Trump added that “now’s not the time” to discuss a pardon for Ghislaine Maxwell, Epstein’s imprisoned accomplice.

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While the president’s visit did attract some enthusiastic flag-waving supporters at Prestwick Airport, he is also likely to trigger a number of protests, prompting Police Scotland to call in support from other forces in the UK.

The Stop Trump Scotland group has planned demonstrations on Saturday in Edinburgh, Aberdeen and Dumfries.

About 70% of Scots have an unfavourable opinion of Mr Trump, while 18% have a positive opinion, an Ipsos poll in March found.

Mr Trump is staying at his Turnberry property on Scotland’s west coast this weekend, before travelling to Aberdeenshire on Monday, where he will open a second 18-hole course.

He is due to return to the UK in September for a state visit hosted by the King – the first world leader in modern times to undertake two UK state visits.

UK

‘Immigration is killing Europe’: Donald Trump issues warning to leaders as he arrives in Scotland

Published

21 hours ago

July 26, 2025

admin

Donald Trump has landed in Scotland ahead of a four-day trip, which includes high-level meetings, praising Sir Keir Starmer as “a good man” but also calling illegal migration a “horrible invasion” that was “killing Europe”.

Crowds gathered at Prestwick Airport in Ayrshire amid a major security operation for the US president’s visit.

Mr Trump told reporters: “I like your prime minister. He’s slightly more liberal than I am… but he’s a good man… he got a trade deal done. It’s a good deal for the UK.”

Trump latest: Donald Trump arrives in Scotland

The pair are expected to discuss potential changes to the UK-US trade deal which came into force last month.

“There’s no place like Turnberry. It’s the best, probably the best course in the world. And I would say Aberdeen is right up there,” the US president said.

“Sean Connery helped get me the [planning] permits. If it weren’t for Sean Connery, we wouldn’t have those great courses,” he added.

Mr Trump told reporters there was “a good 50-50 chance” of an agreement with the EU but added there were “maybe 20 different” sticking points.

EU diplomats say a deal could result in a broad 15% tariff on EU goods and half of the 30% Trump is threatening to impose by 1 August.

The US president touched on illegal immigration and gave European leaders a stark warning.

“You better get your act together or you’re not going to have Europe anymore. You got to get your act together,” he said.

“But you’re allowing it to happen to your countries and you got to stop this horrible invasion that’s happening to Europe. Immigration is killing Europe,” he told reporters.

He was also scathing about the installation of wind turbines across Europe.

Domestically, President Trump faces the biggest political crisis of his second term in office over his administration’s handling of files linked to disgraced financier and sex offender Jeffrey Epstein, who died in prison in 2019.

He faced another round of questions after stepping off Air Force One. “You’re making a big thing over something that’s not a big thing. I’m focused on making deals, not on conspiracy theories that you are,” he said.

Mr Trump added that “now’s not the time” to discuss a pardon for Ghislaine Maxwell, Epstein’s imprisoned accomplice.

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The Stop Trump Scotland group has planned demonstrations on Saturday in Edinburgh, Aberdeen and Dumfries.

About 70% of Scots have an unfavourable opinion of Trump, while 18% have a positive opinion, an Ipsos poll in March found.

President Trump is staying at his Turnberry property on Scotland’s west coast this weekend, before travelling to Aberdeenshire on Monday, where he will open a second 18-hole course.

He is due to return to the UK in September for a state visit hosted by the King – the first world leader in modern times to undertake two UK state visits.