Showbiz royalty Lionel Blair has died at the age of 92, his agent had announced.

The seasoned performer was from the old school of variety shows and was capable of turning his hand to almost anything – including choreography, dancing, acting and presenting.

He was a regular fixture on our TV screens throughout the late 1960s, 1970s and early 1980s.

He enjoyed a long and successful career on stage and screen and was best known as a team captain on charades-style TV show Give Us A Clue.

He was also the presenter for quiz show Name That Tune.

Born in Montreal, Canada, Blair moved to Britain when he was two-years-old.

Blair fed his early passion for performing while sheltering from air raids during the Second World War.

He grew up in the Stamford Hill area of north London and was evacuated to Oxford when war broke out, with his sister Joyce and mother Deborah.

However, the family’s stint in the countryside did not last long and they returned to London after witnessing a German plane crash leading to his father, Myer, calling them back to the capital.

“If that can happen there, what’s the point of being in the country away from each other?” Blair said his father told him.

He appeared in films include The Limping Man, A Hard Day's Night and Absolute Beginners and took part in Celebrity Big Brother.

His agent said: "He got to a very ripe old age, he was loved by his family, and I think he died in their company, which is lovely."