Sir Clement Freud

Broadcaster and former Liberal MP Sir Clement Freud has died aged 84. A statement from his family said Sir Clement had died on Wednesday evening at his London home. He is survived by his wife of 59 years, the actress Jill Freud, five children and 17 grandchildren. His funeral will be held next week. A grandson of psychoanalyst Sigmund Freud, Sir Clement had a varied career as a cookery expert, press columnist and radio game show contestant. Renowned for his lugubrious expression and mournful voice, he was a regular panellist on the BBC's Just a Minute for more than 30 years.

Comedian Tony Hawks, another regular on the long-running Radio 4 show, remembered him being a "formidable" character. "I had listened to the show as a boy, so meeting him was like meeting a hero," he told BBC Breakfast. "You always knew he would be a challenging performer. Through his great intellect he'd always bring out the best in you." Writer and broadcaster Stephen Fry has also paid tribute, remembering Sir Clement as an "immensely generous, benevolent and charming man". "My favourite memory is of him in full flow on Just a Minute, still able to trip up people a quarter of his age," he told Radio 4's Today programme.

Born in 1924, the young Clement Freud began his career in the hotel business before turning to journalism. He started writing on cookery for newspapers and magazines in the 1950s, later expanding into a variety of subjects, including sport. His idiosyncratic pet food commercials with Henry the dog, first broadcast in the 1960s, launched him on a long career as a television and radio personality.

His political career began in 1973, when - against the odds - he won the Isle of Ely constituency for the Liberal Party. Ten years later he transferred to North East Cambridgeshire, a seat he held until 1987. He was knighted the same year. Sir Clement worked for a string of titles, including the Observer, the Daily Telegraph and the Daily Express. Last year he wrote about his death in The Times, claiming his relatives would want to inherit his wine.