Sir Michael Parkinson reveals he has prostate cancer

Sir Michael Parkinson. Photo / NZ Herald

British TV chat show host Sir Michael Parkinson has revealed he has prostate cancer.

The Sun newspaper said the 78-year-old television legend had just started intensive radiation therapy after the disease was discovered in a routine medical check.

"I have cancer - and I must admit it is a bore," Parkinson said in the British tabloid. "I am 78. Of course mortality is on the mind. But I'm not afraid."

Parkinson divides his time between Britain and Sydney. He retired from his television show in 2007 but continued to work, writing his autobiography and touring with his successful one-man show.

Knighted in 2008, he hosted his TV chat show for 25 years. Stars he interviewed included Muhammad Ali, Fred Astaire, Richard Burton and Orson Welles.

After "Parky" performed his first live stage show in New Zealand in 2009, the Herald wrote: "He's sung with Bing Crosby, danced with Will Smith, played a love scene with Bette Davis, and had his knee famously touched by almost every sex symbol you can think of."

The son of a Yorkshire coal miner, Parkinson has more than 60 years' experience in journalism. He became one of the most recognisable faces on TV and has interviewed some 2000 of the world's most famous people.