George Alagiah death: BBC newsreader dies aged 67 after bowel cancer diagnosis
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BBC newsreader George Alagiah has died at the age of 67, his agent has said.
A statement from Mary Greenham to the PA news agency said: “I am so terribly sorry to inform you that George Alagiah died peacefully today, surrounded by his family and loved ones.
“George fought until the bitter end but sadly that battle ended earlier today.”
Greenham continued: “George was deeply loved by everybody who knew him, whether it was a friend, a colleague or a member of the public. He simply was a wonderful human being.
“My thoughts are with Fran, the boys and his wider family.”
The Sri Lanka-born journalist and face of BBC One’s News At Six since 2007 was diagnosed with stage four bowel cancer, which had spread to his liver and lymph nodes, in April 2014.
He underwent two rounds of chemotherapy and several operations, including the removal of most of his liver.
In October 2015, he announced that his treatment was over and returned to BBC News At Six the following month. His cancer returned numerous times in the years since.
In December 2017, Alagiah underwent further treatment before again returning to work.
He took another hiatus in October 2021 and returned in April 2022.
That same year, Alagiah appeared in a campaign for Macmillan Cancer Support. He spoke about his experience of living with stage four bowel cancer.
“People always ask me how I cope and it’s the hardest question...” he said in the campaign.
“The challenge at first was getting my cancer diagnosis straight in my head – despite having so much going for me, a successful career and a loving family, here I was just being told I was dying.”
More to follow...
