The Sky At Night's Sir Patrick Moore dies aged 89

Astronomer Sir Patrick Moore, who presented The Sky At Night since 1957, has died today aged 89.

The broadcaster "passed away peacefully at 12.25pm this afternoon" at his West Sussex home, a group of his friends and staff said in a statement.

ITV News's Damon Green reports on the life of the astronomer and broadcaster.

Sir Patrick, who celebrated the 55th anniversary of The Sky At Night in April, had battled ill health in recent years.

The stargazer had become wheelchair-bound and unable to look through a telescope.

He died after failing to fight an infection.

Queen guitarist Brian May paid tribute to a "dear friend and a kind of father figure to me".

Tributes were also paid to Sir Patrick on Twitter:

At a party celebrating the 55th anniversary of the BBC programme, Sir Patrick said he hoped the stargazing series would continue "indefinitely".

The last programme was broadcast on Monday.

Since the show began in 1957, Sir Patrick had only missed one episode when he was struck down by food poisoning.

The show's guest included many prominent scientists as well as astronauts Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin.

But the demands of live television have led to the occasional blooper, with Sir Patrick famously once swallowing a fly live on air.