Bernard Hill dies at 79

Lord Of The Rings star's latest show due to air tonight

by Amber Wilkinson

Bernard Hill speaking to Siobhan Synnot in 2017
Bernard Hill speaking to Siobhan Synnot in 2017 Photo: Courtesy of Pako Mera/© EIFF, Edinburgh International Film Festival All Rights Reserved

Boys From The Blackstuff star Bernard Hill has died at the age of 79.

The Manchester-born star who began his career in TV roles including Yosser Hughes in the Alan Bleasdale drama, went on to find fame on the big screen, playing notable characters, including Theoden in The Lord Of The Rings trilogy and Captain Edward Smith in James Cameron's Titanic.

His agent confirmed his death with the BBC.

Early shows in his career also included I, Claudius and Crown Court. He was a versatile character actor, with other films including Scottish cult favourite Restless Natives and Hollywood fare like Gothika.

His career was celebrated at an in person event at Edinburgh International Film Festival in 2017, when he was on the international jury.

Hill's latest TV drama, The Responder, is due to air on BBC tonight.

Share this with others on...
News

Inviting curiosity Ildikó Enyedi on the value of science, perception, discovery and Silent Friend

Streaming Spotlight: the rites of Spring We shine our Beltane spotlight on films in which the old ways linger

Fighting fit for a debut feature Valéry Carnoy talks toxic masculinity, memory, confidence and Belgian 'soft-power'

Collective power We look ahead at the programme of this year's Folk Film Gathering

Writing hidden messages Arnaud Desplechin on guilt, melodrama, feeling haunted, and Two Pianos

Clever crafting with Idiots Chris Barfoot on his six-camera set up and three-day shoot of his debut feature

More news and features

We're bringing you news and reviews from the San Francisco Independent Film Festival and Queer East.



We're looking forward to Cannes.



We've recently brought you coverage of Visions du Réel, Fantaspoa, Overlook, BFI Flare and SXSW, the Thessaloniki International Documentary Festival, the NY Rendezvous with French Cinema, the Glasgow Film Festival, the Berlinale, Sundance and Palm Springs.



Read our full for more.


Visit our festivals section.

Interact

Don't forget that you can follow us on YouTube for trailers of festival films and more. You can also find us on Mastodon and Bluesky.


It's a busy time for festivals and here's the latest from the spring events:


Cannes 16 titles added to line-up


Cannes Announces full jury


Cannes Directors' Fortnight selection


Cannes Payal Kapadia heads Critics' Week jury