News of his death was confirmed by his wife to BBC Radio Lancashire.
The star had previously suffered difficulties with his health and was hospitalised in 2016 after suffering a stroke.
The former deputy headmaster, who was born in Lancashire, began his career as a stand-up comedian on the club circuit in the 1960s.
He honed his craft on the northern club circuit, whilst still working full time as a teacher.
He became a household name when he began presenting ‘Bullseye’ in 1981, which ran for 14 years until it was axed in 1995.
The popular Sunday night gameshow mixed general knowledge questions with darts.
His catchphrase ‘look what you could have won’ - was uttered to unlucky contestants who missed out on the show’s star prize, although he claims he never uttered ‘super, smashing, great’, which is also associated with him and the show.
He also scored a number of acting roles, appearing in ‘Jonathan Creek’, ‘Phoenix Nights’, ‘Muck And Brass’, ‘Last Of The Summer Wine’ and ‘The Wheeltappers And Shunters Social Club’, as well as appearing on the ITV sketch show ‘You Must be Joking’.
Fellow comedian Jim Davidson was one of the first to pay tribute...
He is survived by wife Phyllis and his two children, Susan and Peter.