Michael Parkinson

 

Michael Parkinson
Born	28 March 1935 (1935--) (age 72) Cudworth, Barnsley, South Yorkshire, England
Occupation	Broadcaster and journalist
Spouse	Mary Heneghan (three children)

Michael Parkinson CBE (born 28 March 1935) is an English broadcaster and journalist. He is most famous for presenting his eponymous interview programme, Parkinson.

Early life

Parkinson, or "Parky" as he is familiarly known, was born in Cudworth near Barnsley, Yorkshire. The son of a miner, he was educated at Barnsley Grammar School and passed two O-Levels: in Art and English Language. He was an enthusiastic club cricketer, and both he and his opening partner at Barnsley Cricket Club, Dickie Bird, had trials for Yorkshire. Parkinson began as a journalist on local newspapers, and his Yorkshire background and accent remain an important part of his appeal. He then worked as a reporter on the Manchester Guardian and later on the Daily Express in London. He also did National Service as Britain's youngest ever army captain^[1] and was involved in the Suez Operation.

Career

Television

During the 1960s, Parkinson moved into television, working on current affairs programmes for both the BBC and Manchester-based Granada Television and then followed a vast career. The British Film Institute has an extensive overview and filmography of Parkinson's work. Parkinson holds a prolific 451 credits as a presenter on his own and teamed with others.

From 1969, he introduced a film review programme, before moving on to become a chat show host and a household name in the United Kingdom. Parkinson is best known for hosting his well-known show Parkinson. The show has been very successful and has aired from 1971 to the present day. It features only the most famous celebrities, but generally avoids posing sensitive questions. Parkinson has interviewed over 1,000 of the world's most famous people. He has said that he only suffered from celebrity shock once: when he interviewed his childhood hero, Keith Miller on the show.^{[citation needed]} In October 2003, Parkinson had a controversial interview with Meg Ryan on his talk show, whilst she was in the United Kingdom to promote In the Cut. He later commented that it was his most difficult television moment.^[2] His one professional regret was that he never interviewed Frank Sinatra.

He was one of the original line-up of TV-am, together with Angela Rippon, Anna Ford and Robert Kee, who were all eventually replaced with younger talent. He also took over as host of Thames Television's Give Us a Clue from Michael Aspel.

In 1992, Parkinson appeared as himself in the television drama Ghostwatch. He was the studio link during a fictional, apparently live, paranormal investigation. However, the cinéma vérité style in which it was shot led to many complaints from BBC viewers, who believed it had depicted real events. From 1995 to 1999, he hosted the popular BBC One daytime programme Going for a Song. He again plays himself in Richard Curtis' 2003 romantic comedy, Love Actually, interviewing the character Billy Mack, who is played by Bill Nighy. From 31st January to 3rd February 2007, Parkinson presented "Symphony at the Movies" at the Sydney Opera House, where he shared stories about his interviews with movie stars, and introduced music from some of his favourite films.

Parkinson announced that he will retire after the next series of Parkinson. The final series of his show Parkinson will have a 12 week run on ITV in the Autumn. Parkinson said in a statement made on June 26, 2007:^[3]

“

After three enjoyable and productive years at ITV, and after 25 years of doing my talk show I have decided that this forthcoming series will be my last. I’m going to take next year off to write my autobiography and consider other television projects. My thanks go out to all those who have worked on the shows down the years and the viewers for their loyal support and occasional kind words.

”

In 2007, Parkinson appeared in the Australian soap Neighbours as himself.

Radio

Parkinson took over BBC Radio 4's Desert Island Discs in 1985, after the death of its creator, Roy Plomley. He stayed for three years until handing over to Sue Lawley. Between 1994 and 1996 he hosted Parkinson on Sport on BBC Radio Five Live. Since 1996 he has presented a Sunday morning show on BBC Radio 2 called Parkinson's Sunday Supplement, which features a newspaper and entertainment round-up (with the help of various journalists) and a lengthy interview with a media personality. These are interspersed with music that demonstrates his penchant for jazz and big-band arrangements. Parkinson announced his retirement from the programme in October 2007, only a few months after quitting his television chat show.[1] In the past he has presented a mid-morning programme on London's LBC Newstalk 97.3FM. He was responsible for "discovering" jazz pianist Jamie Cullum, among others.

Writing

In the 1980s, Parkinson wrote a series of children's books called The Woofits about a family of anthropomorphic dog-like creatures who lived in the fictional Yorkshire coal-mining village of Grimeworth. The books led to a TV series, which he narrated.

He previously wrote a sports column for the Daily Telegraph and is currently President of the Sports Journalists' Association of Great Britain.^[4]

Personal life

In 1959 he married Mary Heneghan. Mary Parkinson herself presented the long-running Thames TV daytime show Good Afternoon, and briefly presented Parkinson in the 1970s. They have three children and eight grandchildren. He is a keen cricket fan, and in 1990 hosted a World XI team against Yorkshire ^[5].

Honours and awards

In 1999 he was the recipient of an honorary doctorate from the University of Lincolnshire and Humberside. He was invested as a Commander of the British Empire by Prince Charles in November 2000 for services to broadcasting.^[6]

In a list of the 100 Greatest British Television Programmes drawn up by the British Film Institute in 2000, voted for by industry professionals, Parkinson was ranked 8th ^[7]. In April 2006, Parkinson was awarded the prestigious Honorary Patronage of the University Philosophical Society. He was also voted number 20 in ITV's "TV's 50 Greatest Stars".

In popular culture

His presenting techniques were spoofed by Alistair McGowan on the show Big Impression and by Jon Culshaw on the comedy show Dead Ringers, where during sketches, Culshaw portrays Parkinson interviewing members of the general public at bus stops and other everyday locations. The Kenny Everett character Cupid Stunt was "interviewed" by a cardboard cut-out Michael Parkinson in all of "her" sketches. He is one of the figures on the cover of the Wings album Band on the Run. In 2005, Parkinson made a guest appearance with comedian Peter Kay on the music video of the re-released "Is This the Way to Amarillo" for Comic Relief, which subsequently became a No. 1 single. Parkinson was also featured in Irregular Webcomic! No. 1697.^[8]

Notes

External links

• Michael Parkinson and the MBC's Encyclopedia of Television
• Michael Parkinson on BBC Radio 2
• Michael Parkinson at the Internet Movie Database

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