Former BBC television chief dies aged 80
Published Date:
12 August 2008
SIR Bill Cotton, the BBC's former managing director of television, died yesterday, the corporation said.
Sir Bill, who retired in 1987, died in hospital in Bournemouth at the age of 80.
Sir Bill had spent seven years as the BBC's head of light entertainment between 1970 and 1977, overseeing classic television shows such as The Two Ronnies, Morecambe and Wise and Monty Python's Flying Circus. He also spent four years as the controller of BBC1.
The veteran television entertainer Bruce Forsyth said last night that Sir Bill was "a very dear friend".
Forsyth said: "It's a very sad day to lose him. He knew about the business. He knew about television.
"He was responsible for what I think was the golden age of BBC television which we'll never have again.
"He knew what the public wanted, and he gave the public what they wanted.
"He knew how to treat performers.
"He knew how to talk to them, how to get them to do things even if they didn't want to. He talked them into it because he knew it would be good for them."
The full article contains 191 words and appears in The Scotsman newspaper.
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Last Updated:
11 August 2008 11:54 PM
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Source:
The Scotsman
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Location:
Edinburgh
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Related Topics:
The BBC
