Good Morning Britain presenters Ranvir Singh and Richard Madeley paid an emotional tribute to Donovan Parsons, a long-standing ITN cameraman who died this week after battling cancer.
Speaking on the ITV show, Ranvir said: "I just want to take a moment to pay tribute to a loving, wonderful member of our crew. Donovan Parsons, a long-standing cameraman, worked with ITN for 25 years. He worked on many, many, many stories with me when I was doing politics."
A 'hard week' for the team
Ranvir highlighted the effort behind the scenes, saying: "We just wanted to say this morning, because it takes a whole family to put this programme on air. When you work these ungodly hours overnight, in the middle of the night, sometimes in the freezing cold and the battling wind and rain."
She added: "Wherever you are bringing the stories to Good Morning Britain, what you really need is upbeat, happy cameramen with a can-do attitude, and Donovan epitomised absolutely the absolute best of what you need."
Ranvir told viewers the team "really misses" Donovan and sent love to his family. Richard added: "One of the huge things that I've enjoyed so much about joining this programme is the team. It's a proper team effort. But, of course, in all teams there are always exceptional characters, and he was one."
Colleagues remember a 'one-off'
Weather presenter Laura Tobin joined the tribute, having worked with Donovan on location over the years. She said: "More than a cameraman, he was just an amazing friend to everybody as well. I think that's what's really unusual to hear. Not only was he incredible at his job, but he also used to watch the show when he wasn't working and phone up the crew to give feedback on how wonderful they were."
She added: "Everybody is saying he was so supportive and loyal, he made me laugh every single morning. He was a one-off; we've had so many happy, fun memories. I feel so privileged to have known him. He had amazing knowledge, he was a brilliant colleague, and he was always smiling."
Laura noted that Donovan worked on his 50th birthday because he said he couldn't think of a better place to be. She sent love to his wife and four children, saying: "He was just a really lovely human being, and his smile lit up the room."
As Laura became emotional, Ranvir reached over to take her hand. Laura called Donovan a "good person" and added: "We just send out love to his family."
Good Morning Britain airs weekdays at 6am on ITV.
