TV joker Jeremy Beadle dies aged 59

12 April 2012

TV presenter Jeremy Beadle has died after a short battle with pneumonia, his agent said.

His wife Sue and close friends were at his bedside.

The star, best known for the shows Beadle's About and You've Been Framed, leaves his wife, daughters Cassie and Bonnie, and step children Leo and Claire.

In a statement, Beadle's agent, Nick Canham of MPC entertainment, said: "Our heartfelt condolences go to his wife Sue, his two daughters, Cassie and Bonnie and his stepchildren Leo and Claire. He will be greatly missed."

As a stalwart of ITV for many years, Beadle regularly pulled in television audiences in excess of 15 million for Beadle's About and You've Been Framed.

Beadle, who was 59, was a significant fundraiser for Children with Leukaemia throughout his life and is estimated to have raised more than £100 million for charities of all description. He was awarded an MBE in 2001.

Beadle was diagnosed with cancer in 2005, but never allowed the condition to affect him. Last autumn, he released three new books, and prior to his illness he was working on a series of television formats.

Henry Kelly, Beadle's co-presenter on Eighties hidden camera show Game For A Laugh, said: "Jeremy and I were firm friends for nearly 30 years. I loved and admired him and I shall miss him desperately. Not only was he a terrific colleague in our Game For A Laugh days and beyond, but he was a most wonderful friend to have and the most entertaining company you could possibly imagine."

TV presenter Noel Edmonds added his tribute, saying: "I am so shocked at the news. I didn't realise he was so ill. We enjoyed a friendly rivalry over the years when I was doing the Late Late Breakfast Show and he was hosting Game For A Laugh. He was a consummate professional but also a greatly misunderstood man - a great TV talent who was never truly appreciated.

"I was always astonished at his ability to raise funds for charity. Nobody in showbusiness raised more money than him. This is a sad loss for TV and a great shame that a new audience have lost Jeremy Beadle."

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