Parkinson announced he was ending his talk show in June

Parkinson, 72, brought down the curtain on his chat show career with a "wish list" of guests including Peter Kay, Billy Connolly and Dame Judi Dench.

Parkinson will sign off with a special edition looking back on his favourite interviews over the last four decades.

Meanwhile, a host of clips from his BBC shows have been made available to view on popular internet site YouTube.

Visitors to the website can see excepts from Parkinson's interviews with Robbie Williams, David Bowie, Sir Ian McKellen and a host of others.

'Legend'

They can also watch his memorably frosty encounter with Hollywood actress Meg Ryan from 2003.

"Parkinson is a legend in his own lifetime and has interviewed some of the biggest celebrities in the world," said a BBC spokesman.

"We've chosen some of the best and worst moments for people to watch online."