Tributes flow for Terry Wogan after veteran BBC broadcaster dies aged 77 after battle with cancer
He offered commentary on the Eurovision Song Contest from 1980 until 2008, garnering a huge following with his light-hearted cynicism of the kitsch music competition.
BBC presenter Terry Wogan, one of British television’s most familar 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 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.
