Veteran BBC presenter Terry Wogan dies at 77

BBC presenter Terry Wogan, one of British television’s most familiar faces and long-running anchor of its Eurovision coverage, died of cancer on Sunday aged 77, his family announced.

“Sir Terry Wogan died today after a short but brave battle with cancer. He passed away surrounded by his family,” said a family statement.

Irish-born Wogan had a successful television career, most notably anchoring Britain’s flagship chat show during the 1980s, and hosted a hugely popular radio show for 27 years, retiring in 2009. Prime Minister David Cameron said Britain had lost a huge talent.

“I grew up listening to him on the radio and watching him on TV,” he wrote on Twitter. “His charm and wit always made me smile.

“Britain has lost a huge talent — someone millions came to feel was their own special friend,” he added.

Wogan started his career as a banker in Ireland but after five years left to become a radio newsreader, beginning a remarkable broadcast career that was recognised with first an OBE and then a knighthood in 2005.

He began presenting the BBC Radio 2 breakfast show in 1972, helping it become Europe’s most-listened radio broadcast with a combination of smooth Irish charm and a subversive sense of fun.

He also hosted BBC TV chat show Wogan from 1982 until 1992, presiding over many memorable moments watched by millions of viewers.

They included football legend George Best turning up drunk, former sports presenter David Icke proclaiming himself as “a son of the Godhead”, US actor Chevy Chase remaining silent throughout the interview and music icon David Bowie refusing to cooperate.

“David Bowie, well he probably wasn’t at his best when I interviewed him,” he later said.

“I thought a solid slap would have helped the situation. I didn’t hit him, of course, but it came close.”

Tony Hall, the BBC’s director-general, led the tributes, calling Wogan “a national treasure”.