Play School presenter and actor Brian Cant has died at the age of 83. He had been suffering from Parkinson's disease.

Play School was one of the BBC's most popular children's programmes, and Cant was one of its longest serving presenters.

The programme, aimed at pre-school children, ran for nearly 25 years from 1964 until 1988, with Cant presenting for most of its run.

He later worked on other BBC programmes including Play Away and Bric-A-Brac.

As well as presenting children's shows he also provided voices for animated children's series such as Camberwick Green and Chigley.


In Trumpton he voiced the famous fire-brigade roll call of "Pugh, Pugh, Barney McGrew, Cuthbert, Dibble, Grubb".

In 2010 he received a BAFTA for his work on children's television.

He also worked as an actor, appearing in episodes of Doctor Who, Casualty and Doctors.

He died at Denville Hall, a retirement home for those in the entertainment industry.

A family statement said: "It is with great sadness that we, his family, have to announce that Brian Cant has died aged 83 at Denville Hall.

"He lived courageously with Parkinson's disease for a long time."