It was in 1958 that Brucie's dedication finally paid off. Having established a minor reputation as a showman, he found himself suddenly plunged into the limelight when he was asked to star in Sunday Night at the London Palladium – one of the most popular TV shows of the time.

It made him a household name, and even sowed the seeds of the Generation Game with its Beat the Clock section, in which members of the public raced through strange tasks while Bruce made exasperated jokes at their expense. After that the work started pouring in, and – while he's best known for his gameshows – let's not forget that he's performed with such legends as Nat King Cole and Sammy Davis Jr.

Did you know these Forsyth facts?

Bruce has also been a bit of a film star in his time. Remember the classic Disney film Bedknobs and Broomsticks with Angela Lansbury? Look closely and you might recognise a young Brucie playing the sinister gangster who stalks the good guys. He also featured alongside Julie Andrews in Star!, a 1968 biopic of the 30s film star Gertrude Lawrence.

Brucie was the original choice to host Who Wants to be a Millionaire – the job was only given to Chris Tarrant because Bruce had other work commitments.

Bruce's daughter Julie wrote the UK entry for the 1988 Eurovision Song Contest. The song, performed by Scott Fitzgerald, was beaten to the top spot (by one point!) by the Swiss entry. The Swiss singer was someone called Céline Dion, who has since faded into total obscurity.

Bruce's real full name is Bruce Joseph Forsyth-Johnson. Good name, good name.

Bruce had his very own US TV series in 1986. Bruce Forsyth's Hot Streak was a "battle of the sexes" game show in which teams of men and women were pitted against each other.

Bruce had a cameo appearance on the Tom Selleck series Magnum PI. Playing (what else?) a game show host.