Dale Winton, presenter of Supermarket Sweep, dies at 62
Popular gameshow host recalled his Jewish upbringing in his 2002 autobiography
Francine Wolfisz is the Features Editor for Jewish News.
Dale Winton, the Jewish gameshow host best known for Supermarket Sweep, has died at the age of 62.
He was a household name in the mid 1990s and early 2000s while fronting shows such as Supermarket Sweep and The National Lottery: In It To Win It, but had kept a low profile in recent years.
Winton was born in Marylebone, London, in May 1955 to Gary Winner (later changed to Winton), a furniture salesman and Sheree, an actress, who converted to Judaism.
In his 2002 autobiography, Dale Winton: My Story, he recalled: “Mum always had a great sense of what was right and wrong. Having converted to Judaism herself, she and made sure I attended Hebrew classes every Sunday and had always brought me up to embrace the wonderfully strong values of Jewish family life.”
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His parents divorced when he was 10 and his father died three years later on the morning of Winton’s bar mitzvah.
Just days after he turned 21, Winton discovered his mother, who he adored, had died after taking an overdose.
His career in showbusiness began when he worked as a DJ on the London club scene before he moved into work in radio and television.
His big break came with Supermarket Sweep, which saw contestants racing around a supermarket collecting items.
He hosted the show from 1993 to 2001, and was involved in a 2007 reboot.
From there, Winton moved onto prime-time shows including The National Lottery’s In It To Win It and went onto host his own Christmas specials as well as celebrity guest shows.
In his 2002 autobiography he came out as gay.
In recent years the once prolific star disappeared from TV screens and in an interview earlier this year he claimed he was keeping a low profile after undergoing several rounds of surgery.
In 2015 he sparked concern after failing to attend the funeral of Cilla Black, who was one of his closest friends.
A year later, he appeared on TV’s Loose Women and revealed he had been secretly battling depression after going through a difficult break up.
He told the show: “I should have taken myself off the TV but I didn’t. Listen, there are worse things in the world – but I had depression and I didn’t realise.
“I always thought, ‘get over yourself’. But my mum died of it. It exists and anybody out there who has had it knows it exists. I didn’t want to put one foot in front of the other but for a couple of really good friends.”
Earlier this year he was back on our screens, hosting Dale Winton’s Florida Fly Drive on Channel 5.
However, only one episode aired in February after the network decided not to show the remainder of the series following the shooting at the Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School.
The other episodes were due to air in June, Channel 5 said.
Winton’s agent confirmed his death on Wednesday at the age of 62.
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