Parky’s modest goodbye – at the pub: Sir Michael Parkinson is ‘laid to rest with private funeral of 90 close friends and family – who then toasted him at his local’
- Service was held at St Michael’s Church, in Bray, with mourners dressed in black
- Friends and family headed to The Hind’s Head pub, in Bray, for farewell drink
Sir Michael Parkinson was reportedly laid to rest with a private funeral of 90 close friends and family before they gave him a farewell toast at his local pub.
The legendary broadcaster, a coal miner’s son from Barnsley, died at the age of 88 last month due to ‘frailty of old age’.
The veteran TV presenter and Barnsley FC fan was known for his intimate interviews with the world’s biggest celebrities, including Muhammad Ali, John Lennon and Dame Helen Mirren, on his famous BBC chat show Parkinson.
The chat-show king, who was fondly called ‘Parky’ by friends and fans, passed away surrounded by his wife Lady Mary and their children at his Berkshire home.
Tributes flooded in for Sir Michael who was labelled ‘the greatest ever interviewer’, ‘charming’, ‘extremely generous’, and for ‘bringing out the very best in his guests’ by the likes of Sir Elton John and Sir David Attenborough.
Sir Michael Parkinson died last month at the age of 88 due to ‘frailty of old age’. He passed away surrounded by his wife Lady Mary and their children at his Berkshire home
A service was held at St Michael’s Church, in Bray, before 90 close friends and family then headed to The Hind’s Head pub (pictured), guarded by two bouncers, to give him a farewell toast
His dearest friend Dickie Bird broke down in tears live on TV as he spoke about the final phone call he had with the legendary broadcaster just one day before he passed away.
READ MORE: Michael Parkinson ‘was constantly questioning himself’ because BBC chiefs ‘doubted his abilities as an interviewer’
Sir Michael’s friends and family recently gathered to say their final goodbyes in what has been a described as modest funeral.
A cricket cap was placed on his coffin alongside a red and white Barnsley FC scarf.
The service was held at St Michael’s Church, in Bray, with mourners dressed in black, with music by the chat show’s favourite singer, Frank Sinatra, being played in the background.
Ninety close friends and family then headed to The Hind’s Head pub, guarded by two bouncers, to give him a farewell toast, reported The Sun.
A source told outlet the send-off was ‘perfect’ and ‘everyone was in good spirits’.
‘It was a very dignified send-off for a man who remained understated and classy to the end,’ they said.
Sir Michael Parkinson, pictured with his friend and famous interviewee Muhammad Ali, has died aged 88
Sir Elton John spoke of his love and admiration for Parky following the chat-show king’s death
Celebrations: The broadcaster was last seen in April with his friend and cricket umpire Dickie Bird (pictured), who was marking his 90th birthday in Leeds. Dickie said: ‘He was the best’
Parky was married to his wife Lady Mary since 1959. He died surrounded by his family
Parkinson was knighted by Queen Elizabeth II for his services to television in 2008
Sir Michael’s son said earlier this month he feels his family has to allow the public’s mourning to subside before they can ‘remember him as a dad and as a husband’.
Appearing on BBC Breakfast on Friday, the broadcaster’s son, Mike Parkinson, spoke about his memories of his father and the insecurities the broadcaster experienced in his career.
Reflecting on the scale of tributes after his father died, he said: ‘We didn’t expect the kind of outpouring, we didn’t expect what happened. I mean, not just here but in Australia.
‘I mean, Australia, there was a golf course he used to be a member of and they put the flag at half mast. Remarkable kind of gestures like that.
‘And I have said previously that it’s a very difficult situation to be in as a family because you do actually feel that you should step back for a while and just let the public mourn the man that they lost in the sense that you don’t want to almost step on their toes because they had a particular relationship with him, either through television, radio, through print.
‘And in a sense they’re mourning a different person and so we have to, in a sense, keep out what we were mourning and keep it separate and allow that to subside before we’re really able to as a family come together and remember him as a dad and as a husband of 64 years.’
Sir Michael had three sons with wife Mary, whom he married in 1959.
Asked how his mother and family were doing at this time, Mike Parkinson said they are still in a ‘sense of shock’ and admitted he has caught himself wanting to reach out to his father before remembering he can no longer do so.
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