Hughie Green

HUGHIE GREEN d1997. English television presenter who became a household name in 1955 with the ITV quiz show "Double Your Money". However he is most associated with his self-developed long-running talent show "Opportunity Knocks". It started as a UK-wide touring show produced for the radio. One of the programmes early finds was singer Frankie Vaughan who came second as part of a duet. When the show transferred to television on the ITV network (first in 1956 and then again from 1964) it began the show-business careers of Les Dawson / Lena Zavaroni / Pam Ayres and Mary Hopkin amongst many others. Hughie Green possessed a pilots license and would fly the panel of judges between audition venues all over Britain, in his small Cessna aircraft. His game show "The Skys The Limit" was generally considered a failure and was dropped by most ITV regional companies after the first run (although it lasted until 1974 in the Yorkshire and Granada regions) eventually being cancelled due to low ratings, combined with a falling-out between Green and producer Jess Yates. Right up until its final shows, Opportunity Knocks was a ratings hit that attracted up to 18 million viewers weekly. Hughie Green died in London of lung cancer aged 77 on the 3rd May 1997.