Richard Griffiths has died aged 65
Withnail & I and Potter actor passes away following surgery
Richard Griffiths has died aged 65, we’re sad to report.
According to a report by the Guardian , he died following complications after heart surgery.
Known equally as well for his film and TV roles as he was for his stage work, he’ll probably be best remembered for Withnail & I and the Harry Potter series, in which he played unconventional uncles.
In the former he was Withnail’s Uncle Monty, and he took an enthusiastic shine to his nephew’s housemate. In the latter, he was Uncle Vernon, the adoptive father figure who made home-life hell for the boy wizard.
Among Griffiths’ other notable roles were teacher Hector in The History Boys (on stage and screen), a dual role in The Naked Gun 2 ½: The Smell Of Fear and the lead in TV series, Pie In The Sky .
Potter star Daniel Radcliffe (who also appeared alongside Griffiths in Equus ) paid tribute, saying that “any room he walked into was made twice as funny and twice as clever just by his presence.” Richard E. Grant took to Twitter to share a farewell message:
My beloved 'Uncle Monty' Richard Griffiths died last night. Chin-Chin my dear friend. March 29, 2013
Griffiths continued to work on high-profile films, appearing in Pirates Of The Caribbean: On Stranger Tides and Hugo in 2011.
Our thoughts go out to his family and friends.
Sign up for the Total Film Newsletter
Bringing all the latest movie news, features, and reviews to your inbox
I'm the Editor at Total Film magazine, overseeing the running of the mag, and generally obsessing over all things Nolan, Kubrick and Pixar. Over the past decade I've worked in various roles for TF online and in print, including at 12DOVE, and you can often hear me nattering on the Inside Total Film podcast. Bucket-list-ticking career highlights have included reporting from the set of Tenet and Avengers: Infinity War, as well as covering Comic-Con, TIFF and the Sundance Film Festival.
There was "no version" of Sonic 3 that wouldn't include Live and Learn according to director Jeff Fowler: "The fans would hunt me down"
Amid Oscar buzz, Zoe Saldana opens up on her new perspective on Hollywood and why she's only really proud of Avatar and Emilia Pérez: "I think I just have to accept who I am as a creative person"