LONDON (AP) -- Alistair Cooke, the broadcaster who epitomized highbrow television as host of ``Masterpiece Theatre'' and whose ``Letter from America'' was a radio fixture in Britain for 58 years, has died, the British Broadcasting Corp. said Tuesday. He was 95.
Cooke died at his home in New York at midnight, a spokeswoman at the BBC's press office said. No cause of death was given, but Cooke had retired earlier this month because of heart disease.
``I have had much enjoyment in doing these talks and hope that some of it has passed over to the listeners, to all of whom I now say thank you for your loyalty and goodbye,'' Cooke said when he stepped down on the advice of his doctor.
Prime Minister Tony Blair expressed sadness at the broadcaster's death.
``I was a big fan. I thought they were extraordinary essays and they brought an enormous amount of insight and understanding to the world,'' Blair told the BBC, referring to Cooke's broadcasts.
``He was really one of the greatest broadcasters of all time, and we shall feel his loss very, very keenly indeed,'' Blair said.
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