Piero Angela, the celebrated Italian television host, science journalist and writer, died on Saturday aged 93. The news was announced on Twitter by his son Alberto, also a well-known face on Italian television, with the simple message "Buon viaggio papà". Widely considered as Italy's David Attenborough, Angela wrote 33 books, which sold three million copies, and made more than 60 documentaries and hundreds of television episodes, winning multiple awards.

Italy's president Sergio Mattarella led tributes to Angela, who began working for state broadcaster RAI in 1952, first as radio reporter and a foreign correspondent, then as a presenter of acclaimed documentaries focusing primarily on science, culture and history.