Actor Timothy West has died peacefully in his sleep aged 90, “with his friends and family at the end”.
He was known for many roles in television and the theatre, including popular soaps Coronation Street and EastEnders.
Husband to Prunella Scales – who played Sybil Fawlty in Fawlty Towers – the pair travelled together on UK and overseas canals in the Channel 4 series Great Canal Journeys.
His children Juliet, Samuel and Joseph West said in a statement issued by his agent: “After a long and extraordinary life on and off the stage, our darling father Timothy West died peacefully in his sleep yesterday evening. He was 90 years old.
“Tim was with friends and family at the end. He leaves his wife Prunella Scales, to whom he was married for 61 years, a sister, a daughter, two sons, seven grandchildren and four great-grandchildren. All of us will miss him terribly.
“We would like to thank the incredible NHS staff at St George’s Hospital, Tooting and at Avery Wandsworth for their loving care during his last days.”
The couple married in 1963 and had two sons, actor Samuel and Joseph.
West was previously married to actor Jacqueline Boyer from 1956 to 1961, with whom he had a daughter, Juliet.
West with his wife, Prunella Scales. Pic: Geoff Pugh/Shutterstock
West with his wife at a charity dinner in 1998. Pic: PA
In 1984, West was appointed CBE for his services to drama in the Queen’s Birthday Honours List.
He was the winner of an RTS television award for his lead role in Churchill And The Generals, released in 1979, according to imdb.com.
In his career, he played Winston Churchill three times, including in The Last Bastion (1984) and in Hiroshima (1995).
West with his son Samuel in 1999. Pic: PA
West was also nominated for best actor in the 1976 BAFTAs for his part as Edward VII in the historical drama.
Four years later, he was nominated in the same category for a number of roles, including as best actor in Crime And Punishment.
West (right) in BBC drama, Last Tango In Halifax. Pic: PA
After a small part as Eric Babbage in Coronation Street in 2013, West appeared in 2014 for the first time as Stan Carter in EastEnders.
He also held other popular TV roles, such as in BBC comedy-drama Last Tango In Halifax.
In the long-running BBC comedy, Not Going Out, he played Geoffrey, the father of Lucy Adams, played by Sally Bretton.
He was the ruthless self-made businessman Bradley Hardacre in comedy-drama Brass, playing the role from 1982 to 1984 before returning for a third series in 1990.
West as King Lear during a 2003 English Touring Theatre production of William Shakespeare’s tragedy. Pic: PA
In 2019, the Bradford-born actor played Private Godfrey in Dad’s Army: The Lost Episodes, a recreation of three missing episodes of the BBC comedy.
His film roles included Commissioner Berthier in The Day Of The Jackal (1973), King Francis in From Ever After: A Cinderella Story (1998), and Nazi physician and war criminal Karl Gebhardt in Hitler: The Last Ten Days (1973).
He was also a regular performer of Shakespeare, playing Lear in 2002 and 2016.
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The actor performed at the Piccadilly Theatre, with the Royal Shakespeare Company, the National Theatre, and the West End, portraying many classic roles, including Shylock, Falstaff, and Macbeth.
Prior to acting, West attended the John Lyon School and Bristol Grammar School.
He worked as an office furniture salesman and a recording technician before becoming an assistant stage manager at Wimbledon Theatre in 1956.