Michael Parkinson suffered from imposter syndrome in career

Parkinson recently died at the age of 88 and was well-loved for his iconic interviews with the likes of comedian Billy Connolly and American boxer Muhammad Ali.

Since his passing, his son has said he was "constantly questioning himself" after getting into the industry and that he “didn’t have as much self-confidence as he appears”.

Michael Parkinson's son says broadcaster suffered from 'imposter syndrome'

Speaking with BBC Radio 4's John Wilson, Parkinson's son said that even after his rise to fame, he was "still very class-riddled".

The director said during the interview: “There were people in positions of authority, at the BBC, that were questioning his talent, questioning his right to be an interviewer.

“He was always acutely aware that he was with people that he felt were brighter than him, were more educated than him.

“He went to the BBC, and he felt very much… not inferior, (but) he was very insecure.

“He was a man who was constantly questioning himself and didn’t have as much self-confidence as he appears to have on television.”

When asked how the broadcaster's "apparent lack of self-confidence" manifested itself, Mike Parkinson said: “I always think, as well, that he carried with him a sense of that working-class guilt, that, you know, when he became successful, when he became famous, in inverted commas, he always looked back to his childhood and looked back to what his dad endured.

“And he always felt, not guilty so much, but almost responsible, and that’s why he always wanted to help his mum and dad, he did lovely things for them…”

Asked if it was “almost like imposter syndrome”, he replied: “It is imposter syndrome, totally, absolutely, 100%.

“He didn’t feel confident in his own skin for a long, long time.”

Michael Parkinson had a 'very political' outlook and 'never trusted the establishment'

Parkinson interviewed big names like Muhammad Ali over his long career (Zak Hussein/PA Wire) (Image: Zak Hussein/PA Wire)

His son said that the Parkinson of the 1970s and the one of 1998 were "different" men.

He said: “He’s a much more confident man, much more, but then that’s because he’d earned his stripes. But in the ’70s, it was a constant battle to fight against, you know, people that wouldn’t really be bothered if you failed…”.

Sir Michael Parkinson's father apparently fostered within him “a very ‘political with a small p’ outlook on the world”.

He added: “He never trusted the establishment because he always felt that the establishment treated people like his father – terribly, and wrongly.

“And he carried that with him all through his life. He always wanted to stand up against what he thought was unfairness.

“He wasn’t interested in politics… he was interested in policy. He always was quite suspicious of people who wanted power for power’s sake.

“What he was was very socially aware, and he was very political in that sense.

“And he always carried it through life – incredibly principled about things. Even to the end of his days, he was very principled.”

Parkinson's 'love of his parents' pushed him to accept a knighthood from the Queen

His son said of the knighthood in 2008: “What you can’t do is you can’t take the working-class lad out of him, and you can’t take the love he had for his parents out of him.

“And, in the end, he couldn’t honestly turn down something that would have made his father in heaven smile and beam with pride, and also not allow his mum to have a day at the Palace. It’s as simple as that, really.

“And also, you’ve got to understand that this says a lad who was born in a pit village, went to a grammar school… worked for the local newspaper and all of a sudden, 67 years later, he’s kneeling in front of the Queen, being knighted…

“It’s too good a story for a journalist and a writer not to give it the endpoint.”