Good Morning Britain hosts Richard Madeley and Kate Garraway have paid on-air tribute to comedian and television presenter Bill Oddie, who has died at the age of 85.
Comedy and wildlife legacy
Oddie rose to fame in the 1970s as part of The Goodies alongside Tim Brooke-Taylor and Graeme Garden. He later became a founding presenter of Springwatch and presented other BBC wildlife programmes including Birding With Bill Oddie and Bill Oddie Goes Wild.
On Tuesday, July 28, GMB presenter Rishi Davda shared the "very sad news" on the programme, calling Oddie "a trailblazer in British comedy" who inspired millions to connect with the natural world.
Personal memories shared
Davda read out tributes before Garraway and Madeley recalled personal memories. Reflecting on Chris Packham's tribute, Madeley said: "He was spiky! When you knew you were interviewing Bill Oddie you had to put your boxing gloves on." Garraway added: "You couldn't say the wrong thing to him."
Davda remembered that Oddie spoke openly about bipolar disorder and depression seven or eight years ago, after being admitted to a psychiatric hospital in 2009 following his exit from Springwatch.
Oddie told The Daily Mirror a decade later: "I never had a proper explanation. I was called in and told: 'We won't be asking you to make any more programmes.'" He added: "Unfortunately, my bipolar element had come into it and I could be very tetchy."
In 2015, he told The Independent his exit left him "flabbergasted", adding: "But a year later, I was diagnosed as bipolar. I thought back. If I knew then what I know now, I'd have accepted that I was going through a manic phase."
Affectionate recollections
Davda said that while working on a piece about Oddie's legacy, everyone spoke lovingly about working with him. He recalled: "One of the former Springwatch producers that I spoke to said, we don't use that term genius very often, but he was one of those few presenters you could throw genuinely anything at and two seconds later, he'd be dealing with it, he'd know what to do, he'd make a funny joke and move through it."
Davda added: "I love that he came back to nature after a couple of decades with the Goodies, and never wavered in his dedication to try and raise money and awareness of those causes. Very sadly missed, I'm sure."
Good Morning Britain airs weekdays from 6am on ITV1 and ITVX.
