By David Wu
Copyright news
His agent, Jackie Gill, confirmed the news in a short statement.
“His son Nick and daughter-in-law Lisa have been constantly at his side and John died peacefully in hospital this morning (Sunday September 21),” it read.
Stapleton had been battling pneumonia. He was 79.
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The legendary journalist worked on programs such as Newsnight, Panorama and GMTV’s News Hour.
He had spoken about his health condition on the Good Morning Britain TV show last year and blew viewers away with his positivity despite the diagnosis.
“There’s no point in being miserable to trying to change anything. It won’t ever change,” he said at the time.
“It won’t ever change. Parkinson’s is here with me now for the rest of my life. Best I can do is try and control it and take the advice of all the experts I’m talking to.”
Parkinson’s quickly impacted his daily life.
His symptoms, including struggles with speaking, swallowing and writing, worsened over the past 11 months.
“I would find myself writing tiny letters that no one else could decipher, feeling fatigued a lot of the time when I wouldn’t do otherwise and of course the voice,” Stapleton said.
“The voice has lost a lot of its resonance so I have to speak louder.
“I’ve got a speech therapist who has helped me a great deal, teaching me to speak more loudly.”
He formed half of an iconic presenting duo alongside his wife, Lynn Faulds Wood, with the pair becoming household names in the 1980s.
They became a much-loved TV couple as they presented BBC’s Watchdog together from 1985 to 1993.
The pair met when she was working in a pub in 1971, going on to wed in 1977 and their son Nick arrived ten years later.
Lynn tragically died from a stroke on April 24, 2020, at the age of 72.
Tributes have been flooding in from far and wide for the presenting powerhouse.
His former colleague and GMB star Charlotte Hawkins hailed the “brilliant broadcaster”.
Writing on X, she said: So sad to hear John Stapleton – our ‘Stapes’ has died.
“He was such a brilliant broadcaster and I loved working with him on GMB.
“A genuinely lovely man, it was good to see him when he came in just a few months ago to talk about his Parkinson’s diagnosis.
“He’ll be much missed.”
Responding to the news in a post on X, Austin wrote: “Incredibly sad.
“A good man and top presenter who could turn his hand to anything. Best wishes to his family.”
Decorated career
John started his journalistic career at the Oldham Chronicle.
At the beginning of the 1980s, John became a correspondent on BBC Panorama and Newsnight.
During his time there, he famously reported from Argentina during the Falklands War in 1982.
In 2004, he was named the Royal Television Society’s presenter of the year.
He was recognised for his work covering the 2003 Iraq War and for a number of interviews including then-Prime Minister Tony Blair.
He interviewed a host of British PMs during his time as a presenter, starting with James Callaghan in the 1970s.
Stapleton was one of the regular contributors to the popular BBC series Grumpy Old Men.
In 2010, he joined ITV’s flagship breakfast show Daybreak as a special correspondent and part-time presenter.
Despite the show being replaced by GMB in 2014, he remained in his position for another year.
-With The Sun
