Alan Rickman dead: British actor and theatre legend has died aged 69

Alan Rickman, the celebrated British film and stage actor best known for roles in Harry Potter, Sense and Sensibility, Robin Hood and Die Hard, has died aged 69 after suffering from cancer. 

Rickman passed away in London with his loved ones by his side. His family said in a statement: “The actor and director Alan Rickman has died from cancer at the age of 69. He was surrounded by family and friends.”

Rickman was born in Acton, west London, in 1946. He attended the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art and began his career on stage after graduating, appearing in productions with the Royal Shakespeare Company. 

Known for his gravelly voice and dominating presence of screen, he also had memorable roles in films such as Love Actually and a Bafta award-winning turn as the Sheriff in Robin Hood: Prince of Thieves, with his breakout role arriving in the form of the scheming Vicomte de Valmont in an acclaimed 1985 RSC production of “Les Liaisons Dangereuses.” But Rickman was not propelled to international fame until he was 41 when he landed the part of Bruce Willis’ arch enemy Hans Gruber in Die Hard. 

Rickman was honoured with a Golden Globe Award and an Emmy Award for his leading role in 1995 film Rasputin. He was unfazed about never winning an Academy Award, telling a US network in 2008: “Parts win prizes, not actors.”

Rickman appeared in all of the Harry Potter films as potions director Severus Snape, a villain who eventually redeems himself. He spoke fondly of his character and the series, reportedly once telling an interviewer: 

“When I'm 80 years old and sitting in my rocking chair, I'll be reading Harry Potter. And my family will say to me, 'After all this time?' And I will say, 'Always.”

Alan Rickman as Professor Snape in Harry Potter and The Prisoner of Azkaban

Stephen Fry led an outpouring of tributes to Rickman from his friends, fellow actors and legion of fans. “What desperately sad news about Alan Rickman,” he wrote on Twitter. “A man of such talent, wicked charm and stunning screen and stage presence. He'll be sorely missed.”

Harry Potter actor James Phelps, who played Fred Weasley, said Rickman was “One of the nicest actors I've ever met. Thoughts and prayers with his family at this time.”

He wed his partner of 50 years, economics lecturer and Labour councillor Rima Horton, in a quiet ceremony in 2012. He had no children.

He is perhaps most cherished among younger fans for playing deceptive hero Severus Snape in the Harry Potter films however, a malicious, slithering and petty professor on the surface, but deep down driven by good.

Here is his thoughtful and heartfelt goodbye letter to the role he penned for Empire in 2011, shortly after wrapping on Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 2.

It read:

  "I have just returned from the dubbing studio where I spoke into a microphone as Severus Snape for absolutely the last time. On the screen were some flashback shots of Daniel, Emma, and Rupert from ten years ago. They were 12. I have also recently returned from New York, and while I was there, I saw Daniel singing and dancing (brilliantly) on Broadway. A lifetime seems to have passed in minutes. Three children have become adults since a phone call with Jo Rowling, containing one small clue, persuaded me that there was more to Snape than an unchanging costume, and that even though only three of the books were out at that time, she held the entire massive but delicate narrative in the surest of hands. It is an ancient need to be told in stories. But the story needs a great storyteller. Thanks for all of it, Jo. 

    -Alan Rickman"