Dermot Murnaghan, a veteran TV host and news anchor, has died just a year after revealing his cancer diagnosis.
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His family confirmed that he passed away at his north London home on the morning of July 11, following a period of illness with prostate cancer.
“It is with great sadness that the family of Dermot Murnaghan announces that he passed away at home in North London earlier this morning,” the 68-year-old’s family said in a statement via the BBC. “He died peacefully with his family at his side.”
Murnaghan was a familiar face to generations of UK viewers. He spent 15 years as a lead anchor for Sky News before departing in 2023. Prior to that, he presented news for Channel 4, ITV, and the BBC, serving as the main presenter of BBC Breakfast from September 2002 to December 2007. He also hosted the popular quiz show, Eggheads.
Murnaghan’s career also extended to documentary work, hosting Crimes That Shook Britain for Channel 5 and Killer Britain for the Crime + Investigation UK channel. In his later years, he launched the podcast Legends of News, where he sat down with fellow seasoned journalists and correspondents to reflect on the major stories that had defined their careers.
Dermot Murnaghan Revealed His Cancer Diagnosis Last Summer
Per the BBC, when Murnaghan revealed his prostate cancer diagnosis last summer, he said he was “responding positively” to treatment and “feeling well.” He went on to become a passionate advocate for early detection, urging “all men over 50, in high-risk groups, or displaying symptoms” to “get tested and campaign for routine prostate screening by the NHS.” He also warned that “this disease can sometimes progress rapidly without obvious symptoms.”
Meanwhile, Murnaghan’s family thanked fans “for the many, many kind messages of goodwill that he received over the last year since his diagnosis of Stage IV prostate cancer and his subsequent campaigning to raise awareness for screening programmes for the disease”.