Lord Of The Rings star Ian Holm has died today at the age of 88 after a battle with Parkinson's disease.
He was best known for his work as Bilbo Baggins in the Lord of the Rings.
"It is with great sadness that the actor Sir Ian Holm CBE passed away this morning at the age of 88," his agent said in a statement.
"He died peacefully in hospital, with his family and carer. Charming, kind and ferociously talented, we will miss him hugely."
Ian leaves behind his artist wife, Sophie de Stempel and five children from previous marriages.
The Rada trained actor previously spoke about his battle with prostate cancer after being diagnosed in 2001 when he was 70.
"It's all strange because I still feel like I'm immortal," Holm said at the time. "I can't believe that I've had something seriously wrong with me
"I didn't go through chemotherapy and my hair didn't fall out - but they won't actually know if I'm cured for another two years. I'll be dead of old age by then," he joked in an interview with The Evening Standard.
In his decades spanning career, Holm was regarded as one of the greatest British actors and won a collection of prestigious awards for his work.
He as awarded the 1967 Tony for Best Featured Actor for his role as Lenny in Homecoming and took home the Laurence Olivier Award for Best Actor in 1998 for the title role of King Lear.
Holm also won a BAFTA in 1981 for his role of athletics trainer Sam Mussabini in Chariot's of Fire, which also earned him an Oscar nomination.
The Essex born star later played Bilbo Baggins in the Lord of the Rings trilogy and revived the role for the later Hobbit films.
His other well known film roles include Ash in Alien and Father Vito Cornelius in The Fifth Element.
After his death was announced, tributes have poured in from fellow actors in admiration of his career.
Eddie Izzard tweeted: "The great Ian Holm is dead. Wonderful actor and it's so sad to see him go. Farewell, you did great work Sir."
Robert Webb added: "I was sorry to hear this - what a splendid actor."
The National Theatre wrote: "We're very sad to hear that Ian Holm has passed away. He was an extraordinary actor and we have wonderful memories of his performance at the National Theatre as King Lear (1997)."
