One of the sport's first stars, who appeared on I'm A Celebrity... Get Me Out Of Here! in 2012, suffered a heart attack while at a darts event in Liverpool on Thursday
THE darts world is in mourning after the death of Eric Bristow at the age of 60.
The Crafty Cockney, a five-time world champion, died following a heart attack at a darts event in Liverpool on Thursday night.
He starred on ITV reality show I'm a Celebrity... Get Me Out Of Here! in 2012 and worked as a pundit for Sky Sports.
Ex-world darts champ Keith Deller led the tributes to Bristow, whom he called “an icon of British sport”.
Deller, 58, who famously beat his close pal in the 1983 world darts final, said: “I’m devastated.
“Eric was one of my best friends. I will sadly miss him.
“Players involved in the game must thank Eric because if it wasn’t for him they wouldn’t be here now.
“In the 40th year of the Monarchy, four world champions of sport had a personal meeting with the Queen.
“There was Frank Bruno, Nick Faldo, Nigel Mansell, and Eric Bristow.
“That’s how big a name he was, both for darts and British sport.”
The crowd in Liverpool for the Premier League burst into a chorus of “there only one Eric Bristow” as the news emerged.
Eric leaves behind two children, Louise and James Bristow, who he shared with his former wife Jane.
The couple had been married for 16 years.
Son James had previously flown out to Australia to meet his father after Eric's stint on I'm a Celebrity.
Eric's most recent partner was Becky Gadd, who he met in 2011.
Professional Darts Corporation (PDC) chairman Barry Hearn paid tribute, saying: “Eric will always be a legend in the world of darts and British sport.
"He was a tremendous player and a huge character and even after his retirement fans would travel for miles to meet him and see him play.
“Eric was never afraid of controversy, but he spoke as he found and was honest and straightforward which is what people admired about him.
“The PDC, and the sport of darts, will miss him.”
Peter Wright was on stage last night, laying against Daryl Gurney, when the devastating news was shared.
Wright broke down in tears, with Gurney pointing to the heavens in tribute to Bristow.
Fans also began to chant Bristow's name in tribute to the darts legend, with placards reading "Eric Bristow Legend" held up.
Social media was also awash with tributes, with former player Wayne Mardle saying that Bristow was the reason he started to play the game in the first place.
He said: "I would never have picked up a dart without Eric Bristow.
"Eric will go down like an absolute superstar of sport. From all walks of life, people know who Eric Bristow was.
"He had that star quality. Not many people had that. They can show off and think they had it, but Eric had it."
Former heavyweight boxer Frank Bruno tweeted: “Very saddened to hear the news that Eric Bristow has passed away today, god rest his soul.”
Dutchman Raymond van Barneveld, also a five-time world darts champion, said: “I’m lost for words and really devastated!
“He was darts, he meant so much to me, cannot believe it! My thoughts go out to his wife and family.”
The current darts world No.1 Michael Van Gerwen tweeted: “A true legend in the game! #RIPEric #legend.”
He added: "Just heard the latest horrible news that Eric Bristow has passed away.
"My thought are with his family at this sad time. True legend in the game!"
Born in East London in 1957, Bristow quickly made a name for himself as a player and mentor.
Bristow was the sport’s first superstar player, winning the world championship five times between 1980 and 1986.
Legendary commentator Sid Waddell famously said after his 1984 triumph: "When Alexander of Macedonia was 33, he cried salt tears because there were no more worlds to conquer... [Eric] Bristow's only 27."
He was ultimately awarded an MBE for his services to sport in 1989.
Bristow was one of the founder players when the PDC (then World Darts Council) was formed in 1993 as the sport's leading stars broke away from the British Darts Organisation.
The London-born player, who struggled for form after battling dartitis in the latter years of his career, mentored and sponsored Phil Taylor, who went on to win a record 16 world titles.
He was inducted into the PDC Hall of Fame in 2005 alongside his great rival John Lowe, and after retiring from competition at the end of 2007 remained a popular figure on the exhibition circuit.
Bristow also worked as a TV pundit and spotter for Sky Sports until he was sacked for controversial comments on social media about child abuse victims.
SunSport darts reporter Rob Maul:
THERE are few sportsmen or women who would accept cans of beer being thrown at them while playing.
There are even fewer who would simply laugh it off as just banter from the crowd.
But then, as anybody who ever met or dealt with Eric Bristow would testify, the Crafty Cockney was a one-off.
And certainly not intimidated by a few beer-chucking louts.
It was often the case, back in the smoky pubs and clubs of the 1980s, that when Bristow travelled to Glasgow to play the hometown hero Jocky Wilson he would be traditionally greeted with several cans of the local brew thrown in his direction.
Yet Bristow never complained. He simply smiled back at the culprits and carried on playing.
To him, this was all part of the drama and theatre of the sport that he loved so much.
And because of that attitude he became a household name.
On the oche, Bristow was a maverick, a showman, arrogant, and never lacking in self-belief or swagger.
When darts was at its peak, when ITV’s Bullseye commanded millions of loyal viewers, Bristow was the biggest name in the sport.
His unbreakable confidence, cheeky smile, skill and personality swept him to five world titles between 1980 and 1986, making darts a worldwide spectator. Across his career, he amassed 70 professional titles.
Bristow was instrumental in two key moments in darts history. He discovered, sponsored and supported a talented young man from the Potteries called Phil Taylor (who went on to win a record 16 world titles).
And he was a leading figure in the formation of the PDC in the early 1990s when the disgruntled players broke away from the BDO, having demanded more money and more a professional environment.
Dartitis, essentially the yips, curtailed his career and, despite a brief comeback in 1997 (when he reached the world semi-finals), he was never really the same maestro on the oche in his latter years as a player.
For the best part of three decades, Bristow travelled the country, undertaking regular exhibitions, entertaining millions of people in pubs with his wit and his arrows. He was leaving one in Liverpool the very night that he died.
It was this common touch, this inability to tow the PC line, which made him a crowd favourite.
Bristow was never afraid to speak his mind. And his tongue often got him in trouble.
Ultimately it got him sacked from his lucrative job as a Sky Sports TV pundit in October 2016 when he made crass comments online about child sex abuse victims. He later apologised for his insensitivity.
Yet it was this frankness and directness which made him so popular.
He famously fell out with Taylor a few years back, when he labelled him “brain dead” for his failure to count on the oche. But the grudge never really lasted.
The pair quickly made up. And Taylor always said, that even 30 years on, whenever Bristow walked into a room, he would stand up out of respect for his mentor. Taylor, the sport's greatest player, would have never been so successful without the guidance of Bristow.
I felt his tongue at times. I spent the 2013 Premier League darts competition ghost-writing his column for a national newspaper. I always found him excellent company and decent value whenever we spoke on the telephone. But 10 minutes of brilliant copy was the maximum he would want to speak for. Any longer and he made it known you were taking the mick.
Nonetheless, each week was an education. He knew the game inside out, he could read it like no other, and often his pre-match predictions turned out to be true.
Bristow was not afraid to criticise the modern player, arguing that they were robotic or lacking character. Being bland and not enjoying your darts irked Bristow.
As a pundit, he was forthright and spoke from authority. He called it as he saw it. You might not have liked what he said. But you paid attention to it.
The sport of darts is certainly a poorer place today without him in it.
