Sad news, although not altogether unexpected as he has been looking very frail of late. He wasn't everyone's cup of tea but at his height he was probably the person most associated with horse racing in this country, and certainly added colour to coverage.
He certainly made his mark whatever programme he was on. Loved him on Celebrity Big Brother. When he appeared on Bit On The Side last year he looked frail and think we all knew then time was coming to an end for him.
While I'm not a fan of his political views, John had a presence in whatever he did and was a groundbreaking broadcaster in horse racing. C4 Racing and The Morning Line until 2012 had his brand all over those shows.
In his post racing career, he carved a new pantomime baddie act on CBB and Bit on the Side which again was always entertaining.
Did he have strong political views? I've seen this mentioned quite a bit on Twitter but it's not something I was aware of.
Certainly he had a politically incorrect outlook on life with his wife "the Booby", although he seemed to have nothing but love and respect for her. But political views?
He was openly Conservative and asupporter of Fox Hunting IIRC. But apart from that and being what would be described by some as ‘politically incorrect’ not really.
He was openly Conservative and asupporter of Fox Hunting IIRC. But apart from that and being what would be described by some as ‘politically incorrect’ not really.