Dickie Bird pays heartfelt tribute to his 'true friend' Sir Michael Parkinson, who made one of his last public appearances before his death at the umpire's 90-year-old's birthday party Dickie Bird paid a heartfelt tribute to his 'true friend' Sir Michael Parkinson The TV icon died on Wednesday at the age of 88, leading to a wave of tributes Parkinson made one of his final public appearances at Bird's 90th birthday party By David Coverdale For The Daily Mail Published: 18:13 BST, 17 August 2023 | Updated: 18:56 BST, 17 August 2023 e-mail View comments Dickie Bird paid a heartfelt tribute to his 'true friend' Sir Michael Parkinson on Thursday after the TV talk show icon died aged 88. Parky, a lifelong Yorkshire fan who once had trials for the club, made one of his final public appearances at Headingley in April when he attended Bird's 90th birthday party. 'There will never be another like Parky, he was the best,' said legendary umpire Bird, who played cricket with him as a teenager for Barnsley. 'I shall certainly miss him. We've been friends since he was 14. We were so close. He was always there for me, and it will take me some time to get over this. 'When he came to my 90th, he wasn't well, but he came. He only rang me the other morning. I said, "You keep going lad", and he said, "No, you keep going". I knew he wasn't well, I knew it was a matter of time. But I'm still shocked. It's very sad.' Dickie Bird paid tribute to his 'true friend' Sir Michael Parkinson after the talk show icon died Their friendship began in childhood with their love of cricket, and continued for seven decades Yorkshire honoured Parkinson with a minute's silence before their One-Day Cup match in York Yorkshire on Thursday honoured Parkinson with a minute's silence before their One-Day Cup match against Hampshire at York. Darren Gough, the club's managing director, said: 'He was a Barnsley boy, like myself, and it was an absolute pleasure to know him and his family. 'We are all devastated here at Yorkshire and the thoughts of everyone at the club are with Sir Michael's family and friends at this sad time.' Parkinson regularly interviewed superstars from the world of sport on his BBC talk show, with notable guests including Muhammad Ali, George Best, Shane Warne and David Beckham. His football team, Barnsley, also paid their respects on Thursday. 'The town has lost one of its favourite sons, and our thoughts are with his family and friends at this time,' the League One club said in a statement. Share or comment on this article: Dickie Bird pays heartfelt tribute to his 'true friend' Sir Michael Parkinson, who made one of his last public appearances before his death at the umpire's 90-year-old's birthday party e-mail Add comment Comments 0 Share what you think No comments have so far been submitted. Why not be the first to send us your thoughts, or debate this issue live on our message boards. Add your comment Enter your comment By posting your comment you agree to our house rules . Submit Comment Clear Close Do you want to automatically post your MailOnline comments to your Facebook Timeline? Your comment will be posted to MailOnline as usual. No Yes Close Do you want to automatically post your MailOnline comments to your Facebook Timeline? Your comment will be posted to MailOnline as usual We will automatically post your comment and a link to the news story to your Facebook timeline at the same time it is posted on MailOnline. To do this we will link your MailOnline account with your Facebook account. We’ll ask you to confirm this for your first post to Facebook. You can choose on each post whether you would like it to be posted to Facebook. Your details from Facebook will be used to provide you with tailored content, marketing and ads in line with our Privacy Policy .