Chart-topping singer Ricky Valance has died at the age of 84.

The star was best known for his hit Tell Laura I Love Her, which broke new ground in 1960, making him the first Welsh male to have a solo number one in the UK.

He also released tracks like Jimmy’s Girl and Movin’ Away, the latter of which reached the number one spot in Australia and The Netherlands.

Ricky’s agent confirmed that he died on Friday (via BBC News), having been hospitalised for dementia shortly before the UK went into lockdown.

Born David Spencer in 1936, the singer initially began working in a coal mine before joining the RAF at the age of 17.

He began his singing career after leaving the military, choosing the stage name Ricky Valance after a racing horse.

Ricky recorded Tell Laura I Love Her in 1960, and it became a chart hit, despite the BBC’s refusal to play it as they reportedly felt the song’s message about a teenager’s death to be in poor taste.

After his initial chart success, Ricky tried out for the BBC’s first A Song For Europe, in a bid to represent the UK at the Eurovision Song Contest. 

He finished in third place, with The Allisons ultimately winning with their song Are You Sure?. 

Ricky released his final single in 2016, a cover of Welcome Home, which raised money for the Royal Air Force Museum, alongside a re-recorded version of Tell Laura I Love Her.

A year earlier, he received a special award at the Wales Millennium Centre, for having been the first Welsh man to top the UK charts as a solo artist.

Listen to Tell Laura I Love Her below: