Bruce Forsyth

Best known as the presenter of some of the U.K.'s biggest game shows as well as his string of catch phrases, Sir Bruce Forsyth was perhaps the most popular and enduring all-round entertainer of his generation. Born in Edmonton, London in 1928, he developed a passion for dancing at a young age thanks to the films of Fred Astaire, and after performing in summer seasons, pantomimes, and dance acts throughout his youth, he landed his big break in 1958 when he was asked to compere the hit TV show Sunday Night at the London Palladium. He was rarely absent from the screen thereafter, hosting the hugely successful The Generation Game, Play Your Cards Right, and The Price Is Right, but it was in 2004 when he landed, arguably, his most high-profile role as co-presenter of BBC One's Strictly Come Dancing. Forsyth also sporadically pursued a music career, releasing Both Sides of Bruce (Live) and Come Get It! in the late '70s, Mr. Entertainment in 2007, and his only chart entry, These Are My Favourites, in 2011, the same year he was awarded a knighthood for his services to entertainment and charity. In ill health toward the end of his life, Forsyth died at his home in Wentworth Estate, Surrey in August 2017; he was 89 years old. ~ Jon O'Brien