The broadcaster Keith Fordyce, who has died of pneumonia aged 82, after suffering from Alzheimer's disease, was the "grownup" presenter of Ready Steady Go!, the 1960s television show that provided young viewers with the latest sounds when there were no pop-music radio stations – apart from the off-shore pirates and Radio Luxembourg. "The weekend starts here!" was the live, Friday-evening programme's slogan, and teenagers were seen dancing on the studio's disco set.
Smartly dressed in a suit and tie, Fordyce introduced acts such as the Beatles, the Rolling Stones, Donovan and Cilla Black. He was chosen for his ability to interview the stars on the show, which began in 1963. Later he was joined by Cathy McGowan, who became a role model for viewers with her clothes and hairstyle, and the original theme tune, the Surfaris' Wipe Out, was replaced by Manfred Mann's 5-4-3-2-1.
Although the BBC launched Top of the Pops at the beginning of 1964, it was a more straitlaced show, based strictly on the latest record charts. Ready Steady Go! maintained its own identity, introducing new acts – such as the Animals – as well as current favourites. Fordyce left at the end of 1965 and the programme carried on for another year, before being axed at the height of its popularity and acquiring a cult status.
"They were such exciting shows. We never knew what would happen," recalled Fordyce of Ready Steady Go!, which at times was chaotic – a forerunner of The Tube in the 1980s and The Word in the 1990s. With a background as a disc-jockey, he went on in 1983 to present the BBC Radio 2 series Sounds of the 60s for its first three years.
Fordyce was born in Lincoln, attended Lincoln school and spent his national service as an announcer with the British Forces Network, in Hamburg (which later became BFBS). He then gained a master's degree in law from Emmanuel College, Cambridge, and took a job as a management trainee with Sainsbury's.
In 1955 he became an announcer at Radio Luxembourg, where two years later he introduced the Power Play to Britain by choosing, along with his fellow presenters Barry Alldis and Don Moss, a new release that would be featured for the entire week.
Fordyce then appeared on the panel in the television gameshow For Love or Money (1959), before presenting Wham! (1960), which featured stars such as Billy Fury and Joe Brown performing in the studio. With his profile soaring, he even appeared as himself in the comedy film Dentist On the Job (1961).
That year, Fordyce became the original presenter of the television pop programme Thank Your Lucky Stars, which included a panel of teenagers voting on the latest releases and created an overnight star in Janice Nicholls, a 16-year-old from the Black Country known for saying, in her broad accent: "Oi'll give it foive." He also co-hosted the quizshow Groucho (1965), with Groucho Marx; Come Dancing; various awards programmes; and, with Bob Hope, the 1970 Miss World contest.
During that time, he was a presenter on the BBC's Light Programme, which became Radio 2. His shows included Pop Inn, Late Night Extra and Beat the Record. He hosted the Westward Television gameshow Treasure Hunt for 14 years, enjoying his time in the West Country so much that he moved to Devon in 1969. He was seen nationally again when he hosted, with the agony aunt Claire Rayner, four series of Thames Television's self-sufficiency programme Kitchen Garden (1976-79).
In 1971, having learned to fly, he set up the Torbay Aircraft Museum, near Paignton, of which he was curator until its closure 17 years later. He made a brief return to Radio Luxembourg in 1983 and hosted shows on the radio stations DevonAir – of which he was a founding board member – and BBC Radio Devon.
Fordyce married Annie Mercer in 1954. She and their four daughters, Rebecca, Kim, Julie and Samantha, survive him.