British TV producer Richard Hopkins has lost his battle with cancer at the age of 47.
He passed away in Britain on Saturday (07Jan12).
Throughout his career, Hopkins produced both Fame Academy and Fear Factor in the U.K. and he later pitched and developed competition series Strictly Come Dancing for the Bbc. The show later transferred to America in the form of now-popular programme Dancing With the Stars.
He also oversaw the first season of reality series Big Brother and produced Britain's The 11 O'Clock Show, which helped to launch the careers of Ricky Gervais and Sacha Baron Cohen.
Hopkins also launched his own production company, Fever Media, with his business partner David Mortimer in 2006.
Remembering his late pal, Mortimer tells the Associated Press, "Television is, by its nature, an ephemeral business, so very few of us can hope to have any lasting legacy. Richard was a glorious exception to this rule and, as one of the greatest producers of his generation, he quite literally got the world dancing."