– Advertisement –
John Stapleton, one of Britain’s best-loved broadcasters and a proud son of Oldham, has died peacefully in hospital aged 79. His agent confirmed he had been living with Parkinson’s disease, which was complicated by pneumonia.
For Mancunians, Stapleton was more than just a familiar face on the telly. Born in Oldham in 1946, he started his career at the Oldham Chronicle before going on to become one of the most versatile presenters of his generation. From local newsrooms to the BBC’s Nationwide and Newsnight, he brought his straight-talking northern style to millions of viewers.
From Oldham Chronicle to national TV screens
Born in Oldham in 1946 to June, a teacher, and Frank Stapleton, secretary of a local co-operative, John grew up immersed in the spirit of north-west England. He attended Hulme Grammar School and St John’s College of Further Education in Manchester. At just 17, he began his journalism career on the Eccles and Patricroft Journal, later moving to the Oldham Evening Chronicle before gaining national newspaper experience on the Daily Sketch in Manchester and London.
Stapleton’s move into television began at Thames Television in 1970, first as a researcher on This Is Your Life and then as a reporter on its regional news programme Today from 1971 to 1975. He joined the BBC’s Nationwide in 1975, reporting and presenting before moving on to Panorama (1980-81), covering subjects from neo-fascist terrorism in Italy to unemployment in Britain. He found the in-depth investigative format less suited to his energetic style, but flourished on the BBC’s Newsnight (1982-83), reporting from Argentina during the Falklands War.
But it was consumer journalism that cemented his reputation. Alongside his wife, Lynn Faulds Wood, he co-presented the BBC’s Watchdog in the 1980s, helping to change the way Britain looked at consumer rights.
John Stapleton Interviewing Margaret Thatcher on Sky in 1989
The pair were hailed as pioneers in their field. Martin Lewis, founder of MoneySavingExpert, paid tribute on X, calling the couple “brilliant pioneers of consumer journalism, laying the ground for people like me.”
John Stapleton’s GMTV years and beyond
Stapleton made a high-profile switch to ITV in 1983, joining TV-am in the months following its rocky launch. As part of the team that replaced the so-called “Famous Five” presenters, he helped transform the station’s fortunes and established himself as a trusted and approachable face of breakfast television. He also handled breaking news with professionalism, famously reporting by phone during the IRA bombing of Brighton’s Grand Hotel in 1984 when TV-am had no cameras on site.
He later returned to the BBC in 1986 to co-present Watchdog with his wife, Lynn Faulds Wood, replacing Nick Ross. The husband-and-wife team tackled consumer fraud, hazardous goods, and red tape, winning campaigns such as abolishing air fuel surcharges and ensuring babies were inoculated against Hib meningitis. During this period, Stapleton also presented BBC Breakfast Time (1988-89) and the BBC regional news programme London Plus (1986-87).
In the 1990s, he hosted The Time, The Place, a travelling ITV audience debate show tackling topical and sometimes controversial issues, eventually becoming the sole presenter. In 1998, he co-presented GMTV’s News Hour with Penny Smith and later became a special correspondent, covering breaking news stories around the world, including Kosovo, Hurricane Katrina, and the Iraq War — for which he won the Royal Television Society’s Presenter of the Year award in 2003. He also interviewed high-profile figures such as Tony Blair and Desmond Tutu.
Stapleton remained a familiar presence on breakfast television until 2015, making occasional appearances on Good Morning Britain while also enjoying a few lie-ins after years of 3.45am starts.
He wasn’t afraid of lighter moments either. One of his most infamous appearances came in 1983 when Rod Hull’s puppet, Emu, attacked him live on TV-am, ripping up his scripts after Stapleton mischievously mentioned Emu’s rival, Michael Parkinson.
He continued broadcasting well into the 2010s, appearing on Daybreak and Good Morning Britain. In 2003, the Royal Television Society awarded him Presenter of the Year for his work covering the Iraq War.
Personal life and resilience
Stapleton’s life was also marked by resilience. His wife Lynn died of a stroke in 2020, just months before he received his Parkinson’s diagnosis. Even then, he remained determined to stay positive. Speaking to the BBC at the time, he said: “What’s the point in not being?”
He even found comfort in singing to help control his tremors, joining the West End cast of & Juliet and raising money for Children in Need.
Proud Mancunian and lifelong Blue
Away from the cameras, John Stapleton was a huge Manchester City fan. In 2008, he told The Independent that if he hadn’t worked in media, he would have happily spent his life following City around the country.
Nick Stapleton, who followed in his parents’ footsteps to become a BBC journalist specialising in consumer issues, best known as a presenter of Scam Interceptors. Nick wrote on Instagram: “You won’t meet anyone with a bad word to say about him. And you can’t do much better than that. I was incredibly blessed to have two pretty remarkable parents.”
According to his son Nick, also a BBC journalist, one of Stapleton’s proudest moments was watching City win the Champions League in 2023. “After the final, he turned to me and said he’d die happy. He meant it,” Nick wrote on Instagram.
Manchester City paid tribute to their famous supporter, saying: “He will be missed.”
Tributes from colleagues and friends
Tributes have poured in from across the media world. Former Good Morning Britain presenter Charlotte Hawkins called him a “brilliant broadcaster” and a “genuinely lovely man.” BBC 5 Live’s Nicky Campbell described him as “a broadcasting giant,” while fellow breakfast TV legend Nick Owen fondly recalled being attacked by Emu with him live on air.
His son Nick summed it up best: “He was just a very loving, unbelievably generous man. You won’t meet anyone with a bad word to say about him. And you can’t do much better than that.”
From his early days at the Oldham Chronicle to covering world-changing events on live television, John Stapleton never lost his northern sense of humour or his loyalty to Manchester City. He leaves behind an extraordinary legacy, and will be remembered as one of broadcasting’s true greats
– Advertisement –