By DANICA KIRKA
LONDON (AP) — Bill Oddie, a British comic actor who had a second career as as a bird expert and wildlife presenter, died on Saturday, his agent said. He was 85.
Oddie first found fame as a member of The Goodies, a comedy trio that also featured Tim Brooke-Taylor and Graeme Garden. The team starred in an off-beat comedy series of the same name that aired from 1970 to 1982 on the BBC. He went on to host BBC wildlife programs, including “Birding With Bill Oddie,” “Bill Oddie Goes Wild” and “Springwatch.”
“Bill was a multi-talented celebrity — wildlife presenter, broadcaster, comedian, writer, songwriter, musician and conservationist,” his agent, David Foster, said in a statement. “Yet it was never fame that he valued. Instead he encouraged us to respect and protect the environment.”
Born in 1941 in Rochdale, northwestern England, Oddie went on to study English literature at Pembroke College, Cambridge. He appeared in several productions of the Cambridge Footlights, a prestigious student sketch comedy troupe, alongside future stars such as John Cleese and Graham Chapman of Monty Python.
Those student productions led to work in London’s West End and on Broadway, persuading Oddie to abandon plans to become an English teacher or warden of a bird observatory.
Oddie later transformed his birding hobby into a job, presenting multiple wildlife shows and writing books such as “Bill Oddie’s Little Black Bird Book,” “Birdwatching with Bill Oddie” and “Follow That Bird.”
He is survived by his wife, Laura, and daughters Bonnie, Kate and Rosie.
Related Posts:
- BBC wildlife presenter and comedian Bill Oddie dies aged 85 Entertainment Bill Oddie has died aged 85 (Picture: Gareth Cattermole/Getty Images) Wildlife presenter and comedian Bill Oddie has died aged 85. His agent has confirmed that he died on Saturday. In a statement, David Foster announced: ‘It is with deep sadness that I announce the passing of Bill Oddie, the country’s…
- HBO Max Leads the Emmy Drama and Comedy Races for the First Time Since 2017. How Often Do Both Frontrunners Win? Uncategorized HBO Max wants it all. The most-nominated network enters Phase 2 of the Emmy race with the year’s two most-nominated series, giving the platform a rare opportunity to capture television’s top drama and comedy prizes, and potentially make history across three major program categories. “The Pitt,” the sophomore season of…
- ‘Sour Minnows’ Is the Surreal Body Snatching Comedy That Mystified and Delighted Its Premiere Audience — Fantasia Uncategorized Six men lie face down on the ground, licking a deserted street in L.A. It’s a stomach-churning introduction, but “Sour Minnows” is not a conventional tale. It’s a hangout movie about roommates Ricky (David Brown, “Jury Duty”) and Tepper (Chase Williamson, “The Guest”) who accidentally step into a different plane…
- Zendaya and Tom Holland’s ‘epic’ wedding party to take place at famous British castle Entertainment Tom Holland and Zendaya opted for such a low-key do, we didn’t even know it had happened (Picture: VCG/VCG via Getty Images) It has become the worst-kept secret of The Odyssey and the Spider-Man: Brand New Day press tours: Zendaya and Tom Holland, at some point, secretly wed. The famed…
- LGBT+ people don’t need advice from British right-wingers after the Berlin attack News Our community is in mourning (Picture: AFP/Getty) ‘Just woken up and seen the news. Horrible. Is everyone ok?’ ‘We’re fine, thanks for checking in. The bouncers at Berhgain are wearing bulletproof vests, I never noticed that before.’ These were the messages I sent yesterday to a Berlin WhatsApp friend group,…
(Visited 1 times, 1 visits today)