Bill Oddie, British Comedian and Wildlife Broadcaster, Dies at 85

Bill Oddie, a multi-talented British entertainer who became a household name as a member of the comedy trio The Goodies before establishing himself as one of Britain's most prominent wildlife presenters, has died at 85. His agent, David Foster, announced his death on Saturday, July 27, 2026.

Oddie was born in 1941 in Littleborough, near Rochdale in Lancashire, and studied English literature at Pembroke College, Cambridge. At university, he performed in Cambridge Footlights productions alongside future Monty Python members John Cleese and Graham Chapman. These performances led to work in London's West End and on Broadway, where he performed in Cambridge Circus and later wrote and appeared in the BBC radio sketch series I'm Sorry I'll Read That Again (1964–1970).

He achieved his greatest television success with The Goodies, a sketch comedy series that aired from 1970 to 1980 on the BBC, featuring Oddie alongside Tim Brooke-Taylor and Graeme Garden. The show, known for its anarchic humour and surreal sketches performed on a three-seater bicycle called a "trandem," was later revived by ITV with a 1981 Christmas special and a six-part series in 1982. Oddie co-wrote comic musical numbers with the group, including chart hits such as The Funky Gibbon and Nappy Love. He also performed in the English National Opera production of The Mikado in the late 1980s.

After his comedy career, Oddie transitioned into wildlife broadcasting, transforming his lifelong passion for birdwatching into a successful television career. He presented numerous BBC wildlife series including Birding with Bill Oddie (1997–2000), Bill Oddie Goes Wild (2001–2003), Wild in Your Garden (2003), and Britain Goes Wild With Bill Oddie (2004). He became best known for co-presenting Springwatch and Autumnwatch, popular live outside broadcasts that continue to air. Oddie left those programmes in 2008. He also authored several books on conservation and birdwatching, including Bill Oddie's Little Black Bird Book, Birdwatching with Bill Oddie, and Follow That Bird.

In his later years, Oddie was open about his mental health struggles, disclosing that he experienced clinical depression and bipolar disorder. In 2015, he told The Guardian that he had "inherited the same genetic flaw" as his mother, who was diagnosed with schizophrenia but may also have had bipolar disorder. In September 2020, he posted on Twitter about lithium toxicity that had nearly proved fatal over the summer.

Oddie is survived by his wife, Laura, and three daughters: Rosie (from his marriage to Laura), and Kate and Bonnie (from his first marriage to jazz musician Jean Hart). His agent described him as "the country's best-loved birder" and highlighted his significant contributions to conservation and environmental protection, noting that "such a massive contribution to conservation will never be forgotten."