Former singer and television star Cilla Black has died at her home in Spain aged 72.
Most famous for presenting Blind Date and Surprise! Surprise!, Ms Black also enjoyed 11 top ten hits including chart-toppers 'Anyone Who Had a Heart' and 'You're My World'.
Local police in Spain confirmed the Liverpool-born star died at her home in Estepona in the Costa del Sol.
She had travelled there with her son Robert.
Born Priscilla Maria Veronica White on 27 May 1943, Black was always encouraged to sing by her family.
She once worked as a cloakroom assistant in Liverpool's Cavern Club - birthplace of The Beatles - before embarking on her own singing career.
She adopted Cilla Black as her stage name after being mistakenly called that in a newspaper article around that time.
She was introduced to Brian Epstein by John Lennon who persuaded him to audition her. In September, 1963, Epstein signed her up as his only female client.
Lennon and Paul McCartney wrote her first single, which although a relative failure, launched a music career that spanned several decades before she moved into television where she hosted a string of popular shows.
She made her television debut in 1968 with Cilla, welcoming guests from Tom Jones to Cliff Richard and celebrated 50 years in television in 2013.
She was married for 30 years to her manager Bobby Willis, who died in 1999 of cancer aged 57.
The couple, who lived in Denham in Buckinghamshire were said to have had one of the strongest relationships in showbusiness.
They were said to have only spent three nights apart since their marriage before he became ill.
Ms Black is survived by her three sons Robert, Ben and Jack. Her daughter Ellen died shortly after her premature birth in 1975.
Here is TEN's 60-second tribute to the great #cillablack https://t.co/M08NpVBaFC
— RTÉ TEN (@RTE_TEN) August 2, 2015
Deeply shocked to learn that Cilla has passed away. I hope you are now at peace lovely lady. Thank you for the lunches and the laughs x
— Carol Vorderman MBE (@carolvorders) August 2, 2015
We're deeply saddened by the news that our friend, the fabulous Cilla Black has passed away at the age of 72. pic.twitter.com/ixSaUyPmNY
— Loose Women (@loosewomen) August 2, 2015
Dear #Cilla our 60's pop icon, a true star of Sat Night TV & a friendly, caring, generous lady. A Lorra Lorra love & gratitude Cilla. Noel
— Noel Edmonds (@NoelEdmonds) August 2, 2015
This photo is even more special to me now... pic.twitter.com/nmUcArmJjO
— Holly Willoughby (@hollywills) August 2, 2015
Black's popularity stemmed largely from her amiable nature and her proud Liverpudlian accent, addressing people affectionately as "chuck" and her "lorra, lorra laughs" catch-phrases.
Her second single the Burt Bacharach-Hal David composition, 'Anyone Who Had A Heart' shot to Number One and became the biggest-selling single by a female artist in the history of British popular music.
This launched her on an extraordinary pop career, with 20 consecutive Top 40 hits on the British single and EP charts, including 11 British Top Ten singles and two consecutive Number One singles in 1964.
Her hits included 'You're My World', 'Alfie', the theme song from the Michael Caine film of that name, and 'Step Inside Love'.
Black's pop career persisted until the end of the 1960s, by which time she was an internationally-acclaimed star, having notably successfully broken into the difficult United States market.
She branched into acting with 1964's 'Ferry Across the Mersey', which featured Gerry & The Pacemakers, also out of Epstein's stable.
But by August 1967, only days before his premature death, Epstein had engineered her switch to television.
Her own variety show for the BBC regularly commanded audiences of 22 million. So while her pop career was declining she was developing into the most popular figure on television.
It was this resounding TV success which was eclipsing her musical career, although she always said she preferred to be remembered for her songs than for anything else.
Blind Date (1985-2003), Surprise! Surprise! (1984-1999) and Moment of Truth (1998-2001) never lost their popularity during their long and successful runs.
