It has been reported that Cilla died at her Spanish home in Estepona, on the Costa del Sol.
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Spanish police have said they believe Black died of natural causes, but this is yet to be confirmed.
THE death announced today of entertainer Cilla Black will have saddened the many fans who have followed her career as a singer and TV presenter since the sixties when she was discovered at the Cavern Club.
She said: “That’s when I just went into full labour, and it was very bad”.
Singer Sir Cliff Richard said he will miss his “outrageous” friend dearly. “She was a lovely girl who infected everyone with her great spirit”. I’ve seen her twice in the last few weeks and as always she looked immaculate.
Cilla’s pop career persisted until the end of the 1960s, by which time she was an internationally-acclaimed star, having notably successfully broken into the notoriously hard United States market.
Priscilla Maria Veronica White was born in Liverpool in 1943 and later changed her name after a newspaper mistakenly referred to her as Cilla Black.
One moment she possibly enjoyed a little bit too much was when she swore LIVE on This Morning.
“As a friend she was always fun to be with, kind, generous and caring, a very special lady. Her family have asked for their privacy to be respected at this time”, a representative for Cilla said in a statement.
Despite his sadness, Paul says he is lucky to have shared so many precious memories with the Liverpool TV legend, including his 60 birthday celebrations in June.
Tony Hall, director-general of the BBC, said: “Cilla Black was a wonderful artist and talented entertainer who brought joy to millions”.
Of watching the show, Cilla, she said: “It’s a unusual experience seeing other people recreating your life…”
“She was Liverpool’s Cinderella, and she did go to the ball”. She went on to have 20 consecutive Top 40 hits on the British single and EP charts, including 11 British Top Ten singles and two consecutive Number One singles in 1964.
“A loving life loved in the living of it”.
In 1968 she began hosting her own television talk show, beginning a broadcasting career that saw her present some of Britain’s most popular programmes over half a century.
She said: “Cilla Black was the complete entertainer/host in an era when everyone watched TV”.
“I was only with her a couple of weeks ago”.
She was introduced to music mogul Brian Epstein by Lennon, and was eventually signed by Parlophone Records in 1963, enjoying a huge hit with a cover of Burt Bacharach’s “Anyone Who Had a Heart” in February, 1964.
He has also continued to pay tribute to Black, posting a video of Cilla Black performing Anyone Who Had A Heart.
Black had three sons as well as a daughter, who died in infancy, with her late husband and manager Bobby Willis.
Cilla’s rise to stardom was recently told in an award-winning three-part drama starring Sheridan Smith.
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Celebrity friends and admirers have been paying tribute on Twitter, including new Surprise Surprise host Holly Willoughby.
