'Giant' Of Television, Bill Cotton Dies

The former head of light entertainment at the BBC has died, the corporation has announced.
Sir Bill Cotton, 80, who retired as Managing Director of Television at the BBC in 1987, died on Monday at a Bournemouth hospital.
Sir Bill oversaw some of the BBC's most popular 1970's shows such as Monty Python's Flying Circus and Morecambe and Wise.
The writer of another major TV hit, Dad's Army, David Croft, has been paying tribute to Sir Bill saying he was the "master jeweller" in the "golden age" of television.
He revealed that Sir Bill actually helped him overcome opposition at the BBC to producing the sitcom about the Home Guard.
Mark Thompson, Director General of the BBC said Sir Bill was "one of the giants of BBC television".
"He was both a great impresario and also a passionate believer in public service broadcasting."
Sir Bill joined the corporation in 1956 as in-house producer of light entertainment programmes, working on shows like the Billy Cotton Band Show and Six-Five Special.
He then took the role as the BBC's Managing Director of Television from 1981 until his retirement.
Sir Bill said that light entertainment on television had "formed part of the nation's culture".
"Basically, fundamentally, television was a performer's medium and news and current affairs were the sideshow," he said.
Entertainer Bruce Forsyth said Sir Bill was a "very dear friend".
"He was responsible for what I think was the golden age of BBC television, which we'll never have again."
Sir Bill was awarded the Academy Fellowship by the British Academy of Film and Television Arts (BAFTA) in 1998, the highest accolade that can be awarded by the academy.
(DS)