Bill Turnbull death: Susanna Reid makes heartbreaking tribute to broadcaster

Charlie Herbert

Susanna Reid pays tribute to Bill Turnbull

She presented BBC Breakfast alongside him for more than a decade

Susanna Reid has paid tribute to her former colleague and friend Bill Turnbull, following the news of his death at the age of 66.

Reid shared the iconic orange BBC Breakfast sofa with Turnbull from 2003 to 2014 before her departure.

In a tweet, she described her former colleague as the “most generous man in the business.”

She wrote: “Bill was the kindest, funniest, most generous man in the business. I feel lucky to have worked with him and he taught me everything.

“But above all, he was devoted to his family and I am heartbroken for them. RIP Bill. We will miss you so much.”

Bill was the kindest, funniest, most generous man in the business. I feel lucky to have worked with him and he taught me everything.

But above all, he was devoted to his family and I am heartbroken for them. RIP Bill. We will miss you so much. https://t.co/RyfhBoE9O2

— Susanna Reid (@susannareid100) September 1, 2022

Turnbull presented the BBC’s flagship morning news show for 15 years until his departure in 2016, when he moved to Classic FM.

In 2018, he had been diagnosed with prostate cancer.

In November 2017, it was whilst filming a celebrity edition of The Great British Bake Off for the same channel in aid of Stand Up to Cancer that he found out he had the disease himself.

Following the news of his passing, a number of tributes have poured in from across the world of television.

TV critic and journalist Scott Bryan described Turnbull as a “breakfast television legend.”

Former BBC Breakfast host Dan Walker said it was “an honour to sit on his sofa.”

Bill Turnbull was so kind and generous when I took over from him on BBC Breakfast. He was full of brilliant advice and it was clear just how loved he was by his colleagues and the audience. It was an honour to sit on his sofa.

My thoughts are with his family and friends.

— Dan Walker (@mrdanwalker) September 1, 2022

A truly lovely, bright & decent human.

Bill Turnbull: Former BBC Breakfast presenter dies aged 66 https://t.co/Idp4mT2I3s

— Rob Rinder (@RobbieRinder) September 1, 2022

The news broke during the broadcast of Thursday morning’s BBC Breakfast show.

His former colleagues Naga Munchetty and Charlie Stayt paid an emotional tribute on BBC Breakfast.

Munchetty said: “His energy was amazing. He came into this programme and threw everything at it. He was funny; he was a brilliant journalist. He loved this programme and he loved serving you, the audience.”

Stayt added that Turnbull “didn’t take himself too seriously”.

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