but went national on the ITV network from 1973 to 1977, although Waddell had left ITV by the last series of the programme. BBC In 1976, Waddell switched to the BBC and his experience with televised darts helped him to become one of the commentators on the first World Professional Darts Championship when it began in 1978. Waddell stayed with the BBC until 1994, commentating on all darts events covered by the BBC from 1978 to 1994, with his last darts commentary on the BBC being the first four sets of the 1994 BDO World Championship Final between John Part and Bobby George. During his time with the BBC, Waddell penned ten episodes of a successful children's television series, Jossy's Giants in 1986. He was also the writer of two series of another children's show Sloggers which ran from 1994 to 1996. He was also a director for Mop and Smiff and assistant producer for the follow-up series Mike, Mop and the Moke. His credits also include working with the eccentric scientist Magnus Pyke and he was Alan Whicker's producer on Whicker's Women in 1972. He worked on the Russell Harty Show, and in 1993 did a series for Tyne Tees Television called Waddell's World in which he was a butler to a posh Tweeddale family, a caravanner and on the dole. He made one performance as the "Voice of the Balls" on the National Lottery Red Alert on BBC in 1999. He said he was sacked for being "too Geordie". Sky Sports From 1994, Waddell became an independently employed commentator, but mainly associated with his work with Sky Sports. The first darts tournament he commentated on for Sky Sports was the 1994 World Matchplay at the Winter Gardens, Blackpool, in August 1994. For the next 17 years, he worked continuously as a commentator on all darts tournaments televised by Sky Sports. In September 2011, Waddell was diagnosed with bowel cancer. Despite this diagnosis and undergoing treatment, he managed to come back to the darts commentary box in the spring of 2012 during some Premier League nights. After commentating on a sporadic basis during the 2012 Premier League, Waddell did not commentate at either the 2012 UK Open nor the 2012 World Matchplay prior to his death on 11 August 2012. Waddell's last darts commentary came in the 2012 Premier League final between Phil Taylor and Simon Whitlock on 17