Legendary Harry Potter star Leslie Phillips has died at the age of 98 following a long illness.
The veteran actor was best known for voicing the Sorting Hat in the global Hogwarts franchise as well as his work in the iconic Carry On films.
Leslie passed on Monday (November 8) after a whopping eight decades in show business, which saw him appear in over 200 films, TV and radio series.
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His wife Zara, 63, paid a heartfelt tribute to her husband, whom she dubbed a “national treasure” and a “truly great showman”.
She said: “I’ve lost a wonderful husband and the public has lost a truly great showman. He was quite simply a national treasure. People loved him. He was mobbed everywhere he went.
“When we married he cheekily introduced me to the Press as royalty, insisting I was the new Zara Phillips and that I was related to the Queen.”
Actor Stuart Antony joined the flood of tributes as he wrote: “The wonderful Leslie Phillips CBE has left us. Aged 98. A true gentleman, fantastic actor and the nicest man I’ve ever met. His stories were the best.. RIP Leslie Phillips.”
(Image: Warner Bros)
The BAFTA-nominated actor shot to fame in the 1950s and became known for playing the sweet-talking rogue in the Carry On films, where he coined catchphrases like “Ding Dong”, “Well, hello” and “I say”.
Leslie left school at the tender age of 14 to grace the West End stage before bagging his first film role in the comedy, Lassie from Lancashire (1938).
He also served in World War 2 from 1943 as a Second Lieutenant in the Durham Light Infantry but was later declared unfit for service.
Leslie was awarded an OBE by Her Late Majesty in 1998 and a CBE 10 years later for his services to showbiz.
He married his third wife, Zara Carr, in December 2013 at the age of 89.
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Source: Celebrities - dailystar.co.uk
