Renowned TV presenter John Stapleton has died peacefully in hospital at the age of 79, his agent has said.

The face of factual programming for a generation, Stapleton featured widely on shows such as the BBC's Watchdog and GMTV's News Hour, after beginning his career at the Oldham Chronicle.

Paying tribute, former Good Morning Britain presenter Charlotte Hawkins described the broadcaster as a "brilliant broadcaster" and a "genuinely lovely man".

His agent Jackie Gill said his Parkinson's disease was complicated by pneumonia, and that his son Nick and daughter-in-law Lisa had been "constantly at his side".

"He had an innate ability to navigate any challenge from breaking news to technical hiccups, whether in the studio or on location he was brilliant," said Erron Gordon, Good Morning Britain co-creator and current BBC department head, describing Stapleton's on-air versatility as "unmatched".

After beginning his career at local newspapers in north-west England, Stapleton moved into TV, joining the BBC's Nationwide programme in 1975.

He then became a journalist for the corporation's flagship current affairs programme Newsnight when it launched in 1980, reporting from Argentina during the Falklands war.

He then moved to ITV in 1983, where he was part of the team that launched the channel's TV-am breakfast show, before returning to the BBC three years later to front the consumer advice programme Watchdog with his wife, Lynn Faulds Wood

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John Stapleton: Renowned TV presenter dies aged 79

The presenter, who featured on the BBC's Watchdog, had been diagnosed with Parkinson's disease.

RIP John.

He had a good innings RIP