Latest news with #TyneTees
Yahoo
a day ago
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
ITV star dies aged 76 as BBC Doctor Who's Russell T Davies leads tributes
ITV presenter and weather reporter Wincey Willis has died at the age of 76 after being diagnosed with dementia. She was a weather presenter on the ITV programme Good Morning Britain, where she made history as the UK's first national female weather forecaster. Doctor Who screenwriter Russell T Davies has shared a touching tribute to the ITV alum, reflecting on an encounter with Wincey. Read more: UK heatwave will see 26 counties in England above 30C this weekend Russell even used her name in an episode of his 90s drama series Queer as Folk. Taking to social media, he wrote: "She hunted me down. She got hold of my email address just to tell me how delighted she was to be mentioned! She was absolutely hilarious and full of joy, what a lovely woman. "We corresponded for years, having a wonderful laugh, she was a hoot. What a great career! Adored her. Well done, Wincey, night darling." Wincey died back in December 2024, though news of her passing has only just been made public. Before joining GMB, Wincey was scouted for the role by ITV's deputy editor in chief, Clive Jones, while she was a presenter for ITV in the Tyne Tees region. She originally got into television when she was invited to audition for the position of weather presenter for Tyne Tees regional TV. A year later, she was awarded her own series on Granada titled Wincey's Pets. She also featured on the game show Treasure Hunt alongside Anneka Rice, though a contract dispute led Wincey to resign from TV-am in 1987. Later in life, she hosted radio shows for BBC Coventry & Warwickshire and for BBC Hereford & Worcester. She married bed salesman Malcolm Willis in 1972 and continued to use his surname after they divorced. Wincey returned to the North East to live in Sunderland after being diagnosed with frontotemporal dementia in 2015.
Daily Mail
2 days ago
- Climate
- Daily Mail
ITV's first female weather forecaster Wincey Willis dies age 76 after being diagnosed with dementia
ITV weather presenter Wincey Willis has passed away at the age of 76 after being diagnosed with dementia. The channel's first national female forecaster, she joined she joined TV-am in 1983. Famous for her magnificent blonde hair, Willis was already a minor star when she took on the forecasting role and had presented her own show, Wincey's Pets, in 1982. She had joined ITV's national programme from Tyne Tees Television, where she had been a forecaster despite admitting that she was not a specialist. In 1985, she joined game show Treasure Hunt as an adjudicator before leaving full-time TV in 1987. She went on to star in pantomime, wrote three books and spent years devoted to wildlife conservation. At one point she lived in a tent in Greece for six months while guarding a turtle population. She did return to screens as a wildlife presenter in 1993 but subsequent TV appearances have been few and far between.
Wales Online
22-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Wales Online
GBBO's Prue Leith's 'horrific' experience 'put her off TV' for years
GBBO's Prue Leith's 'horrific' experience 'put her off TV' for years Great British Bake Off judge Prue Leith has admitted there was one particular experience that put her off working in television for years before she changed her mind Prue Leith has said one experience put her off TV work for years Prue Leith has confessed that a past experience deterred her from pursuing a career in television for many years. Despite being a household name today, there was a period when Great British Bake Off judge Prue, 85, shied away from TV work following a unpleasant stint. Speaking to Candis, she revealed that her time presenting a show for Tyne Tees, aimed at women at home, left her with no desire to return to full-time television work, except for occasional appearances, reports Bristol Live. Prue elaborated: "I had hated television ever since my horrific appearance at Tyne Tees. I was presenting an afternoon show aimed at women at home. "With no previous presenting experience, it would be fair to say I wasn't a natural. I was very bad at it and didn't enjoy it at all. "I think it died a death. That experience put me off so I didn't do any more telly for years. I was occasionally asked to do the odd thing and chose not to accept." Article continues below "I limited my TV appearances to a couple of guest appearances in documentaries during the 1980s on topics that interested me." Prue Leith is now a staple of cooking TV However, Prue's perspective on television work reportedly shifted in the early 2000s following the death of her husband Rayne. In the wake of this personal tragedy, she joined the presenting team on the Great British Menu, a role which Prue admitted she "loved" and remained in for over a decade. Reflecting on her television resurgence, Prue has expressed surprise at her popularity across the pond. She shared: "I've been visiting New York and LA in the last two years to do my own show. "If I walked through Chelsea in New York, I'm stopped all the time because they get a double dose of the series, both US and the UK original versions. I get asked if I am that lady from the baking show." Prue has been a mainstay on Bake Off since 2017, but it was recently announced that she would not be participating in the celebrity edition of the programme, choosing instead to spend more time with her husband John Playfair, whom she married in 2016, and discussing how travel has changed for her. Article continues below Prue Leith and John Playfair Speaking on The Travel Diaries podcast, Prue said: "I haven't got much longer. I'm 85 and I want to spend as much time as I can with him. "If we are filming abroad, or like next week, we're going to New York, because I've got to publicise the American baking show, then I'm now old enough for my agent to say 'I'm sorry, but she has to ring her husband, because she's 85, she needs someone to carry the bags'."
