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Star Trek and X-Men actor Sir Patrick Stewart dies aged 86

Summarised from 12 outlets · 21 reports · Updated 29 Oct, 20:45 · Archive

Sir Patrick Stewart, best known for playing Captain Jean-Luc Picard in Star Trek and Professor Charles Xavier in X-Men, has died aged 86.

Sir Patrick Stewart, the acclaimed British actor best known for playing Captain Jean-Luc Picard in Star Trek: The Next Generation and Professor Charles Xavier in the X-Men films, has died aged 86. He died at his home in Los Angeles on Wednesday, surrounded by family and friends in the care of his wife, Sunny.

His death followed what his representatives described as a 'brief and poignant journey with Alzheimer's disease and Lewy body dementia'. A statement posted to his social media channels said he had been 'held in the warm embrace of family and friends, surrounded by live music, prayer, tears, laughter, and the kind of profound emotion that only he could inspire after a lifetime of devotion to us all'.

Born in Mirfield, West Yorkshire in 1940, Stewart had an extraordinary career spanning more than six decades. He trained at Bristol Old Vic Theatre School before joining the Royal Shakespeare Company in 1966, where he spent 16 years establishing himself as a formidable classical actor alongside future stars including Helen Mirren and Ben Kingsley.

Stewart landed the role of Captain Jean-Luc Picard in Star Trek: The Next Generation at age 47, a part that would define his career and introduce him to international audiences. The series ran from 1987 to 1994 and spawned several films. He later starred as Professor Charles Xavier in multiple X-Men and related Marvel films.

Beyond his science-fiction work, his career encompassed theatre, television and film across multiple genres. He was knighted by Queen Elizabeth II in 2010. He won a Grammy for best spoken word album for children for Prokofiev: Peter and the Wolf in 1996, earned four Emmy nominations and two supporting actor Olivier Awards for Shakespeare plays.

In an interview with TV Insider in July, Stewart reflected on his career, saying 'as any actor my age will tell you, there are fewer and fewer available roles as we get older'. He added that he continued to receive interesting offers and could not imagine ever officially retiring, stating 'I'll always and forever be an actor'.

Star Trek and X-Men actor Sir Patrick Stewart dies aged 86
Image: Evening Standard

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In this story: Patrick Stewart · Star Trek: The Next Generation · X-Men · Royal Shakespeare Company · Mirfield · Yorkshire · Los Angeles · Sunny Ozell

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