John Noakes was born on 6 March 1934 at the Royal Halifax Infirmary in Halifax, West Riding of Yorkshire, to Sallie Hinchcliffe (née Hampson) and Arthur Wallace Bottomley. His parents divorced when he was nine and he went to live with his grandmother. The following year, his mother married Canadian big band trumpeter Alfred “Alfie” Noakes, and John took his stepfather’s surname.

Noakes trained as an aircraft engine fitter for the RAF and BOAC before deciding to become an actor. He trained at the Guildhall School of Music and Drama, and made his stage debut as a dog and a clown in a pantomime. He went on to do repertory theatre work in Surrey, where he met his future wife, Vicky.

Noakes joined Blue Peter as a presenter on 30 December 1965, on BBC One. Peter Purves replaced Christopher Trace in 1967, creating the “Val, John and Pete” line-up, often referred to as “the dream team.” At a time when most BBC presenters spoke with Received Pronunciation, Noakes’s Yorkshire accent was a novelty. As a presenter, he usually fulfilled the role of action man in the series.

Overlapping with his Blue Peter work, Noakes and his dog Shep made six series of Go With Noakes, in which they travelled around Britain getting involved in diverse activities. A total of 31 episodes were broadcast between 1976 and 1980. He later settled in Mallorca with his wife, where they ran a boat rental business.

Noakes was diagnosed with Alzheimer’s disease several years prior to 2015 and largely withdrew from public life, residing in Majorca where he received care from his wife and family. He passed away at Son Espases Hospital in Palma de Mallorca on 28 May 2017, at the age of 83.