Elizabeth Taylor
Here we look at some of the more notable people who passed away...
The legendary Daily Mirror journalist died aged 58 on Christmas Day after battling pancreatic cancer. A popular, feisty and glamorous northerner, Sue was intensely proud of her working class roots and championed the underdog in the weekly Mirror column she wrote for 13 years. Billed as “Everybody’s favourite columnist”, she was among the first women to break into the male dominated world of Fleet Street national newspapers.
Pete Postlethwaite
The actor, who died on January 2 of pancreatic cancer aged 64, was once described by film director Steven Spielberg as “probably the best actor in the world today” and received an Oscar nomination for his performance in 1993 film In The Name Of The Father. His notable movies included the 1995 film The Usual Suspects and Brassed Off in 1996.
Gary Moore
The former Thin Lizzy guitarist died of a heart attack aged 58 while asleep on holiday in Spain on February 6. After joining the infamous band Skid Row as a 16-year old Belfast-born Moore went on to make his name with Thin Lizzy and then as a solo artist.
Elizabeth Taylor
The curtain came down on one of Hollywood’s most fascinating careers with the passing of the film legend on March 23, aged 79. The London born movie icon’s powerful screen presence and captivating beauty coupled with a colourful love life made her a mainstay of US popular culture for more than half a century. The double-Oscar winning actress found fame as the perky child star of Lassie Come Home and National Velvet before moving on to adult roles in hits such as Cleopatra and Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf? Taylor, worth an estimated £375m at the time of her death, had been known to struggle with health problems and had apparently been in hospital more than 70 times.
Steve Jobs
Sir Jimmy Savile
The colourful TV legend died in hospital on October 29 after suffering from pneumonia. One of the most famous names on British TV and radio in the 60s, 70s and 80s, he died two days short of his 85th birthday. His hit family programme Jim’ll Fix It drew huge audiences and at the height of its popularity he was receiving 20,000 letters a week. His closed satin gold coffin was displayed at the Queens Hotel in Leeds together with the last cigar he smoked and his two This Is Your Life books. About 4,000 people visited to pay tribute.
Joe Frazier
The former heavyweight boxing champion died from liver cancer on November 7, aged 67. Nicknamed “Smokin Joe”, he fought fellow boxing legend Muhammad Ali three times, including the famous Thrilla In Manila fight in 1975 - widely regarded as the best fight of all time.
Socrates
The Brazilian football superstar died on December 4, aged 57 after suffering an intestinal infection. The idol of the 1982 World Cup, the soccer egend won 60 caps and was easily recognisable in his playing days as a bearded 6ft 4ins midfield genius with great passing ability.
Gerry Rafferty
The musician, whose most memorable hits include Baker Street and Stuck In the Middle With You, succumbed to liver failure after battling alcoholism and died aged 64 on January 4.
Amy Winehouse
Ken Russell
The flamboyant English film director died in his sleep aged 84 on November 27. Known for his controversial films including Women In Love, which
featured Oliver Reed and Alan Bates wrestling nude, he also directed the infamous religious drama The Devils and The Who’s rock opera, Tommy, in 1975. Russell’s 1969 adaptation of DH Lawrence’s Women in Love earned him an Oscar nomination for Best Director.
Christopher Hitchens
The journalist and social commentator died aged 62 on December 15, following a battle with esophageal cancer. Hitchens, a regular contributor to the Daily Mirror, was diagnosed with the illness in 2010 while on a book tour for his memoir, Hitch-22. Born in Portsmouth, the writer worked for the New Statesman before moving to the US to work for The Atlantic, Slate and, most notably, Vanity Fair.
Philip Gould
One of the architects of New Labour, Gould died on December 6 aged 61 of cancer of the oesophagus. He began working with the Labour party during their slow climb back to power. He advised the party on polling and strategy during their unsuccessful elections in 1987 and 1992, as well as during the victorious 1997, 2001 and 2005.
Sir Henry Cooper
One of Britain’s most popular sportsmen, Our ‘Enry died on May 1 aged 76 after months of deteriorating health. Sir Henry, who was knighted in 2000, was best remembered for his two momentous fights against Muhammad Ali in 1963 and 1966. In the first, he knocked Ali - then known as Cassius Clay - to the canvas, but Ali recovered to win.
Gary Speed
The Wales football manager allegedly took his own life at his home on November 27 aged 42. The nation was shocked by the untimely death of a much loved sporting hero. Speed, a former Newcastle, Everton and Leeds player, captained Wales winning 85 caps in a 14-year international career. His greatest moment at club level came in 1992 when he won the championship with Leeds, while he was twice an FA Cup runner-up with
Newcastle.
Dan Wheldon
The IndyCar racing champion died in Las Vegas on October 16, aged 33. The two-time Indianapolis 500 winner, originally from Emberton, Olney,
was killed after his vehicle was caught up in a 15-car pileup on the Nevada track.
Brian Haw
He may have not been a household name, or appeared in glossy magazines, but anti-war campaigner Haw fought for what he thought was right. Haw, who lived for almost ten years in a camp in London’s Parliament Square in a protest against UK and US foreign policy, died on June 18 aged 61 of lung cancer.
Lucian Freud
Realist painter Freud died on July 20, aged 88, following an unspecified illness. A grandson of the psycho-analyst Sigmund Freud, he was acknowledged as Britain’s leading living painter and famously painted an unflattering portrait of The Queen. His portrayal of an overweight nude woman sleeping on a couch sold in 2008 for £20.6m - a world record for a work by a living artist.
David Croft
He co-wrote and produced a string of television sitcoms which kept us amused for decades and died on September 27, aged 89. Croft brought us timeless hits including Dad’s Army, Are You Being Served?, It Ain’t Half Hot Mum and Hi de Hi!
John Sullivan
Sullivan, who wrote one of the best-loved British sitcoms, Only Fools and Horses, died on April 23, aged 64. He had been in intensive care for six weeks at a hospital in Surrey, battling viral pneumonia. He also wrote Citizen Smith and Just Good Friends.
Severiano Ballesteros
John Barry
The composer, famous for his work on Born Free, Out of Africa and the James Bond films, died on January 30 in New York of a heart attack aged 77. The York-born musician composed scores for 11 films in the Bond series, among them Goldfinger and You Only Live Twice. His work saw him win five Oscars, while he received a Bafta fellowship in 2005.
Vaclav Havel
The former dissident playwright, who had a history of chronic respiratory problems, died on December 18, aged 75. As the first president after the Velvet Revolution against communist rule, he presided over Czechoslovakia’s transition to democracy and a free-market economy and oversaw its peaceful 1993 split into the Czech Republic and Slovakia.
Ginger McCain
The legendary racehorse trainer died on September 19, aged 80 after a short illness. McCain saddled Red Rum to win the Grand National three times, in 1973, 1974 and 1977, before winning the world’s greatest steeplechase for a fourth time with Amberleigh House in 2004.
Betty Driver
The Coronation Street favourite died on October 15, aged 91. She had played the role of Rovers Return barmaid Betty Williams (Turpin) in the soap for 42 years. The actress had been in hospital for six weeks following treatment for a chest infection in 2010. Her character became known for her famous Lancashire hotpot - but Driver herself never tasted the dish as she did not eat meat.
Eddie Stobart
The haulage magnate, who built up the Eddie Stobart lorry empire, died on March 31, aged 56. He suffered what were described as “heart problems” before his death. Stobart’s distinctive trucks, with each cabin bearing a woman’s name, were a common sight on motorways across
the UK and Europe.
Claude Choules
The world’s last known combat veteran of World War I, Choules, died in Australia on May 5, aged 110. Known to his comrades as Chuckles, British-born Choules joined the Royal Navy at 15 and went on to serve on HMS Revenge. Choules was reported to have died in his sleep at a nursing home in his adopted city of Perth.
Dr Harry Coover
American Dr Coover, who died in his sleep on March 26, aged 94, was the inventor of Super Glue, the world’s strongest adhesive. Dr Coover was awarded the National Medal of Technology and Innovation by President Barack Obama in 2010.
Cheeta
failure at an animal sanctuary in Florida. He had been handed the Guinness world record in 2005 as the oldest non-humane primate.
Knut
The polar bear, who became world famous after he was hand-reared by keepers after his mother rejected him, died at the age of four on March 19. Knut was found floating in the pool inside his enclosure at Berlin zoo. In 2007, Knut generated more than £4.4m in extra income for Berlin zoo, from the sale of tickets and Knut-branded merchandise.
Wallace McCain
The billionaire Canadian frozen food mogul who brought us the oven chip, died aged 81 on May 13. The co-founder of the McCain Foods empire passed away in Toronto, after losing a 14-month battle with cancer. Forbes Magazine ranked McCain 512th on its annual list of the world’s billionaires, estimating his personal net worth at £1.4bn.
Wilson Greatbatch
The US inventor of the first implantable cardiac pacemaker died in Buffalo, New York, on September 27, aged 92. His pacemaker was first implanted in humans in 1960 and keeps the heart beating in a regular rhythm. Now, hundreds of thousands of people receive pacemakers every year. Greatbatch’s cause of death is not known.
Betty Ford
The US First Lady from 1974-76 died on July 8, aged 93. The wife of President Gerald Ford became the most influential First Lady and famously set up the Betty Ford Center which helps combat substance abuse.
Shelagh Delaney
Delaney, who wrote the screenplay for the seminal work A Taste of Honey, cited by singer Morrissey as the best film of the 1960s, died on November 20, aged 72 following a long battle with breast cancer. Delaney died from heart failure, five days before her 73rd birthday, at the home of her daughter Charlotte in Suffolk.
Harry Moseley
The 11-year-old fundraiser died on October 9 from a brain tumour after raising thousands of pounds for charity. Harry, from Birmingham, became well-known through his presence on Twitter after being diagnosed with the tumour after becoming ill in 2007.
Gary Mason
The former British boxing champion died on January 6, aged 48, in a cycling crash in South London.
Susannah York
The English actress, who shot to fame in films like They Shoot Horses Don’t They? died on January 15, aged 72, following a battle against bone marrow cancer.
Nat Lofthouse
The English football legend, who played for Bolton Wanderers and was capped 33 times for England between 1950 and 1958, died on January 15,
aged 85, in a nursing home in Bolton.
John Paul Getty III
The grandson of billionaire oil magnate J Paul Getty died on February 5, aged 54, after a long illness. He was kidnapped in Rome in 1973, when he was just 16, and his ear was posted to his family before a ransom was paid. He had been paralysed for the last 30 years after a drug overdose.
Dean Richards
The footballer, who played for Bradford City, Wolverhampton, Southampton and Tottenham, died on February 26, aged 36 after suffering from long-term illness.
Jane Russell
The American actress who starred in The Outlaw and Gentlemen Prefer Blondes, died of respiratory illness on February 28, aged 89.
Michael Gough
The British actor who starred in Hollywood hits, Sleepy Hollow and Batman, died on March 17, aged 94, after a short illness.
Jet Harris
The bass guitarist of The Shadows died on March 18, aged 71, following a battle with throat cancer.
Trevor Bannister
The British actor, who appeared in TV shows including Are You Being Served? died on April 14, aged 76 following a heart attack.
Elisabeth Sladen
The British actress who appeared in Doctor Who and the Sarah Jane Adventures, died on April 19, aged 65, following a fight with cancer.
Ted Lowe
The British snooker commentator died after a ten week illness on May 1, aged 90. Lowe’s unmistakable hushed tones earned him the popular nickname “Whispering Ted”.
Jeff Conaway
The American actor, famed for his role as Kenickie in Grease, died on May 27, aged 60, after a long battle with drug and alcohol addiction.
Janet Brown
The British actress and famed for her impersonations of Margaret Thatcher died on May 27, aged 87 after a short illness.
Peter Falk
Graham Dilley
The English cricket hero died on October 5, aged 52 following a battle with cancer.
Diane Cilento
The Australian actress, who starred in Tom Jones and The Wicker Man, and was once married to Sean Connery, died on October 6, aged 78 following a battle with cancer.
George Baker
The English actor, best-known as TV’s Inspector Wexford in The Ruth Rendell Mysteries, died on October 7, aged 80, from pneumonia following a stroke.
AND GOING TO HELL...
Ten years after ordering the 9/11 attacks in which nearly 3,000 people died, the Al-Qaeda leader was found and shot dead on May 2, by US Special Forces. He was aged 54. He was top of the US’ “most wanted” list and had been living quietly in a compound near Islamabad. President Barack Obama called the killing of bin Laden the “most significant achievement to date” in the effort to defeat Al-Qaeda. “Justice has been done,” Obama said.
Muammar Gaddafi
Libyan dictator Gaddafi was shot dead by rebels on October 20 following the capture of his hometown of Sirte. Gaddafi, who ruled Libya with an iron fist for 41 years, was captured and then executed in cold blood in a drainage ditch desperately begging for his life. He was 69. After the fall of Tripoli to forces of the opposition National Transitional Council (NTC) in August, Gaddafi and his family fled the Libyan capital.
Kim Jong-il
The North Korean dictator was said to have died from “over work”, suffering a massive heart attack on his luxury private train on December 17. Under the 69-year-old’s rule millions of people starved to death and hundreds of thousands were imprisoned. Yet in astonishing scenes millions openly mourned their leader at the funeral procession of the brutal dictator.
Donald Neilson
The serial killer knowns as the “Black Panther” died on December 18, aged 75 from pneumonia while in prison. He had motor neurone disease and had spent36 years behind bars. Neilson murdered heiress Lesley Whittle in 1975 and also shot dead three sub-postmasters during armed robberies.
Read more: http://www.mirror.co.uk/news/top-stories/2011/12/30/goodbye-to-all-the-celebrities-who-died-in-2011-115875-23667458/#ixzz1i1nRXPU7
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