Michael Parkinson's Most Memorable Moments, Following His Death Aged 88

From Billy Connolly and George Michael to Meg Ryan and, of course, Emu.
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Michael Parkinson on the set of his talk show in 2007
Ken McKay/Shutterstock

The death of talk show legend Sir Michael Parkinson has got everyone feeling reflective about his greatest and most memorable on-screen moments.

On Thursday morning, Sir Michael’s family confirmed that the broadcaster had died at the age of 88, following a short illness.

Since then, people have been sharing their personal memories of watching Parkinson over the decades. Here’s what people have been saying over on X (formerly known as Twitter)... 

Billy Connolly was the star who appeared on Parkinson the most times, and the presenter is often credited for helping push the comic into the mainstream

Billy was responsible for a slew of memorable Parky moments – from this impromptu duet…

...to charming even the most A-list of A-listers

Michael made no secret of the fact Muhammad Ali was his favourite interviewee

Parky was known for getting his guests to show a different side of themselves – as evidenced from this chat with David Bowie (accompanied by Tom Hanks, no less)

And after George Michael’s arrest, there was only one place the singer wanted to go for his first sit-down interview

During Parkinson’s run, the host became known for asking tough questions…

…challenging his guests…

…and holding his own against some of the most famous people in the planet

He also loved to laugh

Of course, not all of his interviews were winners, and he was met with criticism for certain conversations with stars like Helen Mirren and Meg Ryan

And how could we not mention this moment with Rod Hull and Emu?

Parky’s last show featured an all-star cast including his pal Billy Connolly and his former warm-up man Peter Kay

It also ended with this emotional monologue

And what better note to end on than with this iconic theme music?