Timothy West death: The Day of the Jackal star dies aged 90 after ‘extraordinary life on and off the stage’
British actor Timothy West, known for his work on The Day of the Jackal among a plethora of other projects, has died. He was 90.
His children Juliet, Samuel and Joseph West confirmed their father’s death in an emotional statement shared to X (formerly Twitter) overnight.
“After a long and extraordinary life on and off the stage, our darling father Timothy West died peacefully in his sleep yesterday evening,” the family wrote. “He was 90 years old.”
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“Tim was with friends and family at the end. He leaves his wife Prunella Scales, to whom he was married for 61 years, a daughter, two sons, seven grandchildren and four great-grandchildren,” the statement continued.
“All of us will miss him terribly.”
The statement concluded with a message of gratitude for the NHS staff at Tooting’s St George’s Hospital as well as London’s Avery Wandsworth aged care facility for “their loving care during his last days”.
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Born in West Yorkshire, England, on October 20, 1934, West’s first appearance on the screen was in BBC One’s 1960 miniseries adaptation of Persuasion.
In 1963, he married Fawlty Towers star Prunella Scales, 92, whom he is survived by alongside their three children.
Then came the 1973 political thriller The Day of the Jackal, a film nominated for three Golden Globes and one Oscar.
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West’s prolific stage and screen career also included roles in several long-running British soaps, including Coronation Street, EastEnders and Not Going Out.
His last screen credit is on British soap Doctors, for the November 13 episode Go Out Dancing.
“RIP Timothy West, 90. A wonderful actor, and delightful man,” Piers Morgan wrote on social media in a message that is one of many tributes to West.
“My Life Stories interview with him, as the love of his life Prunella Scales sat in the audience, was so moving. They were married 61 years, and his devotion to her after she developed Alzheimer’s was profoundly touching.”
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