JOHN Stapleton made his final TV appearance back in June, just months before his sad death aged 79.

The broadcasting legend appeared on BBC One’s Morning Live weeks before he passed away early in this morning in hospital.

John Stapleton made his final TV appearance in June on BBC’s Morning Live
Credit: BBC

He shared how his ilness was progressing
Credit: BBC

John passed away this morning surrounded by his family
Credit: Alamy
John, who went public with his Parkinson’s diagnosis last October, appeared on the daytime TV show to share an update on his health.

Speaking to presenter Janette Manrara and sitting alongside the show’s medical expert Dr Oscar, he said: “I’ve still got the tremor, which is difficult, it makes dressing difficult and a bit of a challenge some mornings.

“The speech is another problem because you may be able to hear me now loud and clear, I hope you can at least, but if I go into a room where there is ambient noise, like a pub which I do occasionally frequent as you may know, I sometimes have to repeat myself. It gets a bit monotonous and a bit frustrating.”

John continued: “My limbs are getting stiffer. I am finding use of my left side is difficult, I can’t grip things with my left hand and I am also losing balance from time to time so I have to be very careful walking up and down strairs and getting up too quickly. I might fall over.”

He showed he had maintained his sense of humour, however, adding dryly: “But apart from that life is a barrell of laughs.”

John also recalled how he had watched his own mother battle the disease.

He explained: “My mother had Parkinson’s so I saw first hand what can happen to people with Parkinson’s. She went from a very brilliant outgoing lady to one who was a prisoner in her own home. That is not a prospect I am looking forward to.

“But having said all that a lot of people live almost a normal life with Parkinson’s and research is going on all the time, so think positive.”

I am doing the best I can. I have a lovely speech therapist who insists I talk more slowly and I have a keep fit lady who comes every week and absolutely knackers me.”

John’s agent Jackie Gill confirmed he had passed away today after getting pneumonia, which can be a complication of Parkinson’s disease.
John Stapleton dead- Former BBC and ITV presenter dies peacefully in hospital aged 79 after Parkinson’s diagnosis
She also told how his family were at his side when he sadly passed away earlier today.

She said: “John had Parkinson’s disease which was complicated by pneumonia.

“His son Nick and daughter-in-law Lisa have been constantly at his side and John died peacefully in hospital this morning.”

The ex-Good Morning Britain presenter revealed his shock diagnosis in October last year.

John has been a fixture on the nation’s screens for decades

He went public with his Parkinson’s diagnosis last October
Credit: Rex

John’s wife Lynn passed away in 2020
Credit: Getty
Stapleton, who presented on BBC’s Watchdog and GMTV’s News Hour, gave an emotional interview on ITV’s Good Morning Britain.

Announcing the diagnosis, he said: “There’s no point in being miserable… It won’t ever change.

“I mean, 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.”

John was married to fellow presenter Lynn Faulds Wood who tragically died from a stroke on April 24, 2020, at the age of 72.

Parkinson’s is a progressive neurological condition, meaning that it causes problems in the brain and gets worse over time.

It affects around 153,000 people in the UK.

People with Parkinson’s don’t have enough of the chemical dopamine because some of the nerve cells that make it have stopped working.

This can cause a range of more than 40 symptoms, but the three main ones are:

Tremor (shaking)
Slow movement
Rigidity (muscle stiffness)

Other common signs include:

Mild memory and thinking problems
Trouble sleeping