denise robertson
Tributes have poured in following the death of ITV's agony aunt, Denise Robertson, aged 83 ITV

The nation's favourite agony aunt, Denise Robertson of ITV's This Morning, has passed away aged 83 following a short battle with pancreatic cancer. The programme announced the news on their official Twitter account, writing: "Such sad news - our friend and colleague Denise Robertson has lost her short but determined battle against cancer. Full tribute at 10.30."

Robertson, from Sunderland, has been with the programme since it began in 1988. Ruth Langsford read a statement in mid-February saying her diagnosis had come as a surprise but she did not plan to "give up without a fight." She followed it up by thanking her loyal fans who were concerned about her health after she did not feature on the programme for several weeks.

The beloved television personality's family released a moving statement following her passing at the Royal Marsden Hospital in London. They also thanked fans for messages of support.

The statement read:

ITV This Morning presenter Phillip Schofield lead the tributes on Twitter on Friday morning, writing: "I'm heartbroken at the passing of our @itvthismorning icon Denise Robertson. Kind, thoughtful, caring & wonderful."

Robertson's name began trending on Twitter shortly after the announcement as the nation joined in their grief for the long-running agony aunt, who helped solve other people's personal problems for the majority of her career. Viewers and celebrities paid their respects to the star, with Leigh Francis tweeting: "Denise Robertson was a lovely woman. Great sense of humour. Can't believe she's gone. Sad" whilst Celebrity Big Brother host Emma Willis wrote: "A lovely tribute on @itvthismorning for a truly lovely lady, Denise Robertson. Thoughts and love going out to her family..."

See some of the Twitter tributes to Robertson below.