Dale Winton death: Supermarket Sweep and In It To Win It presenter lauded as 'the perfect host'
Dale Winton, who has died aged 62, has been described by fellow celebrities as “kind and mischievous”, “such a gent” and “the perfect host”.
Tributes poured in for the TV presenter known for fronting game show series like Supermarket Sweep and the National Lottery‘s In It To Win It.
His long-serving agent, Jan Kennedy, revealed that he died at his home on Wednesday.
“It is with great sadness that we can confirm the passing of Dale Winton who died at home earlier today," he said in a statement.
“While we know many will share this terrible loss, we ask that you respect the family’s privacy at this time of grief.”
No further details have been made public about how Winton died.
Winton was born in Marylebone, London, in May 1955 to Gary and Sheree, an actress. His parents divorced when he was 10, and his father died three years later, on Winton’s bar mitzvah.
Just days after his 21st birthday, Winton discovered his mother had died after taking an overdose.
After starting out as a DJ in London clubs, he made the leap to radio and TV.
He was propelled to stardom by ITV‘s Supermarket Sweep, which enjoyed an eight-year run from 1993 to 2001, with a rebooted version hitting screens in 2007.
From there, he moved onto prime-time shows including In It To Win It on the BBC and hosted his own Christmas specials as well as celebrity guest programmes.
Fellow TV presenter Nick Knowles, who worked with Winton, said after his death was announced: “Lovely man. Kind & mischievous, generous & a great story teller. Same production crew for In it & Who Dares. We’ll all miss him.”
The BBC’s controller of entertainment commissioning, Kate Phillips, said: “Dale was an immensely well-loved individual who brought a wonderfully unique and special energy to the many programmes he presented.
“He was extremely kind, brilliantly funny and was a true gentleman.”
Paddy McGuiness said Winton was “the perfect host, he made it all look effortless”, while Kate Thornton added: “Always such a gent, such a laugh and such a pro.”
Nell McAndrew, who married Winton in a BBC3 spoof, posted a picture of the couple on their happy day.
She wrote: “Dale Winton was always warm and kind. Special memories of a lovely man, often bumped in to each other in the supermarket or on the high street as neighbours before sharing an extra special day together for our ‘wedding’
“Thoughts with his family and friends. Lovely, handsome kind man.”
Recently the star had maintained a low profile, telling TV Times earlier this year that he had undergone a string of surgeries. “I had a shoulder problem and a knee problem, so I took a break to get myself sorted,” he said in January.
But prior to that, in 2015, his absence from the funeral of close friend Cilla Black led to concern for the presenter, who came out as gay in his 2002 autobiography.
The next year, during an appearance on Loose Women, he spoke about his struggle with depression, saying: “I always thought, ‘Get over yourself.’ But my mum died of it.
“It exists and anybody out there who has had it knows it exists. I didn’t want to put one foot in front of the other but for a couple of really good friends.”
He credited Little Britain star David Walliams with helping him at the time.
Additional reporting by PA
