Traveloasisspot.com – TV nature presenter Chris Packham is among those paying tribute to the “delightfully unpredictable” Bill Oddie , who was an “utter joy to be with”.
The naturalist, 65, is best known for hosting wildlife programmes for the BBC such as Springwatch – having replaced Oddie as the face of the show in 2009.
Oddie had a successful career presenting nature shows for the BBC, having first found fame in the 1970s as a member of comic trio The Goodies.
Packham was among the famous faces flocking to social media to remember Oddie, sharing a picture of him alongside a lengthy and emotional message.
He wrote: “A renegade polymath with binoculars and a beard, Bill was invariably funny and occasionally furious.
“He loved birds and loathed those who harmed them. He was delightfully unpredictable, sparky, smart and at times a bit spiky.
“Critically he really knew his stuff, and his passion was true – he didn’t just pick up his binoculars on telly, he went birding whenever he could.
“So he was genuine and that’s why we loved him, he never needed a script, and took scant interest in any he was given.
“He didn’t like rules and often neglected to play by them. This may have frustrated the serious and the worthy but it always amused his audience – he was an utter joy to be with.”
Packham also described how passionate Oddie was about birdwatching, a hobby he had since he was a child, and said: “I recall finding a black woodpecker in a damp Dutch park with him once.
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“He gazed at it intently, sighed, put down his bins, turned to me and just smiled.
“A massive grin. No words, just a beautiful childlike bliss. That says all you need to know about Bill Oddie.”
“Sadly we’ve not only lost a Goodie, we’ve lost one of the besties,” he added, referencing the comedy group in which Oddie found fame.
Others to pay their respects include Monty Python star Eric Idle, who first met Oddie while attending Cambridge University, and they both rose to fame as actors and comics in the 1960s.
The Grammy-winner, 83, wrote on X: “I’m very sad Bill Oddie has gone. He was sick for some time and I wrote to him.
“He auditioned me for The Pembroke Revue in 1963 and I stepped into his roles for The Edinburgh Festival when the Cambridge Footlights went to the West End.
“We watched England win the World Cup together at Wembley in 66. He was a very fine songwriter and I learned a lot from him.
“He came to France and is in my book. We even had Chelsea season tickets together. I miss him.”
British animal trainer and TV presenter Victoria Stilwell shared an old photo of herself alongside Oddie as she remembered “dearest Bill”.
The 57-year-old wrote: “Not only did you make a generation of children and adults laugh on television, you made us appreciate and love the natural world, especially the world of birds that you were so passionate about.
“Thank you Bill. Fly free. We will miss you.”
Also among those to pay tribute was director, screenwriter and actor Edgar Wright , who hailed Oddie as a “comedy hero”, saying The Goodies was “hugely influential”.
The acclaimed filmmaker, known for comedies such as Shaun Of The Dead, Hot Fuzz and Scott Pilgrim Vs The World, shared footage from the 1970s show to X as he paid tribute.
Wright wrote: “Am so sad to read that Bill Oddie has passed away.
“Although he later became equally famous as the BBC’s resident ornithologist, he had been a comedy hero of mine since my earliest days of watching television, as one of ‘The Goodies’.
“The show was hugely influential on me: its glorious, go-for-broke silliness, almost like a kids’ companion to Monty Python, made it one of my earliest comedic touchstones.
“I loved Bill’s anarchic energy, musical brilliance and willingness to do absolutely anything for a laugh.
“And, it must be said, as the shortest member of the trio, he spoke to me.”
Wright went on to list British comedies which have influenced him throughout the years, saying he will “never forget the giddy thrill” of watching the opening sequence to The Goodies.
“Farewell to a true Goodie. RIP,” he added.
The Young Ones actor Adrian Edmondson said Oddie was a “lovely bloke” in a post on X and recalled how the wildlife presenter wrote a letter wishing them the best when they started making the sitcom and “warning us against interference from higher up.”
He added: “He didn’t know anyone in the cast personally. It just came out of the blue. Lovely thing to do.”
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