My childhood is dying.

Nothing highlights your own mortality and impending demise more than seeing those from TV, Film, Music and more start "Dropping like flies." This morning I read with sadness that former Blue Peter presenter John Noakes has died at the age of 83.

It's been a terrible couple of years really, with David Bowie, Prince and George Michael all signing off for "The great gig in the sky" back in 2016 and now John "Shep, Shep! Get off Petra" Noakes is gone.

John Noakes along with Valerie Singleton were my favourite presenters of Blue Peter. I was that cliché of rushing home from school to watch them make Tracy Island (Thunderbirds) out of a cornflakes packet, two toilet rolls and some plasticine. My favourite section was the Blue Peter Train Set. Choo choo.

There is a bit of a postscript to the celebrities of my youth. A lot of them are dead, a lot of them are in prison and the ones that are still alive are clearly not getting any younger. But here's the greatest mystery though, why is Bruce Forsyth still alive? I mean, he was an old man when I was kid and that was something like fifty years ago! He's got to be at least 137 years old? ;-)

Lets hope John Noakes is now walking Shep in the meadows of heaven (If you believe in that sort of thing?) or abseiling down the side of the supposed mansion of many rooms. As for me, each time a celebrity pops their clog's I'm reminded that I'm not getting any younger myself.