Susanna Reid and Sian Williams returned to BBC Breakfast on Friday to remember Bill Turnbull in a special edition of the show dedicated to their late former co-host.
On Thursday, Bill’s family announced he had died at the age of 66, having been diagnosed with prostate cancer five years ago.
Susanna, who left BBC Breakfast in 2014 to launch ITV rival Good Morning Britain, made an appearance on her former show to pay tribute to Bill, who she shared the famous red sofa with for many years.
She described him as the “perfect gentleman” and “incredibly generous” and recounted how he helped one of her children overcome their fear of dogs.
Telling presenters Naga Munchetty and Charlie Stayt how his dogs were “such an important part of his life”, Susanna said: “When we all moved up to Salford he invited me and my family, my children, to his home to spend the day with Sesi and the dogs.
“My middle son at the time was absolutely petrified of any animals. We couldn’t have a pet at home, he would be scared if there was a cat in the garden, and he was literally sitting in the kitchen.
“And Bill, very gently, took that in hand, and he encouraged my son to throw a ball for Bonnie, Bill’s beloved black labrador.
“And by the end of that day, my son had completely lost his fear of dogs. We were able to have a cat at home.
“He was like, he was like the child whisperer, or the dog whisperer, or Dr Dolittle.
“I mean, he could converse with the animals. He was amazing, they were so important to him and he wanted everybody to have that same experience.”
Another of Bill’s former co-presenters, Sian Williams, also shared her memories of having worked with him for more than a decade until she left the show in 2012.
“He was a very loyal friend, and a very supportive friend. And when I was diagnosed with breast cancer, he was one of the first to reach out and say he was thinking of me and connected with me in that way,” she recalled.
“And then when he was diagnosed with prostate cancer, we did an interview together for the Radio Times where he talked really openly about having things going on in his body with his bones aching and not quite knowing what was going on, and wishing that he had gone to see the doctor sooner.
“And being that honest about his cancer, just meant so many people got themselves checked.”
Louise Minchin was also among the people featured during the BBC’s tributes and revealed Bill was one of the first people she consulted when she decided to leave BBC Breakfast in 2021.
She said: “I think it was kindness and generosity with his time and even when I was still in contact with him – we’re still members of a lottery syndicate which I’m still playing and I will go on playing, by the way.
“But he always was kind with his time. So for example, when I took the decision to leave BBC Breakfast, the first person, one of the first people, I talked (to) about making that decision was Bill, and you know, he was ill at the time, but he took time out of his day to have a long conversation with me about that.
“And I think we all really appreciated that, you know, he had a huge stature, a very important reputation, but he always would give back to all of us.”
Bill hosted BBC Breakfast for 15 years until standing down in 2016.
He later reunited with Susanna on Good Morning Britain, when he guest hosted the show in 2020 and 2021.