Bernard Hill, who starred in Titanic and Lord of the Rings, has died at the age of 79.
The actor, who played Captain Edward Smith in the Oscar-winning 1997 film, died in the early hours of this morning, his agent said.
The father of one child, he became known to an entire generation for his portrayal of King Theoden in the Lord of the Rings trilogy.
He also appeared in two films: Titanic and Lord of the Rings: Return of the King, which won eleven times. Oscars and exceeded $1 billion at the box office.
Hill had first become known to many in Britain for his emotional and nuanced performance as Yosser Hughes in the 1980s drama Boys from the Blackstuff, a role that also brought him to the attention of Hollywood.
His death comes hours before he was due to appear on TV again Martijn Vrijman drama The Responder, which airs on BBC One tonight.
Bernard Hill, pictured here in Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers, played King Theoden in the epic fantasy trilogy
The stage actor will return to our screens tonight in Martin Freeman drama The Responder. Pictured: Hill (left) on set with Freeman (right) during filming for the BBC programme
The actor also played Captain Edward Smith in the 1997 Oscar-winning film Titanic (pictured)
Bernard Hill had a varied film career, rising to fame acting in small, down-to-earth dramas before starring in films that made billions worldwide. Pictured: Hill at the premiere of 'God's Own Country' in Edinburgh in June 2017
The Manchester native had a varied on-screen career, finding fame acting in small realistic dramas before starring in films that earned billions worldwide.
Born in Blackley to a family of miners, he would go to acting school with Richard Griffiths before moving into television.
After small roles in Hard Labor and the poorly received but now critically acclaimed I, Claudius, he got his first big break in the early 1980s.
The actor was cast as Yosser Hughes, a working-class Liverpool man in The Black Stuff and its sequel, Boys from the Blackstuff, in 1982.
The sequel won a Bafta for best drama series in 1983 and was listed as the seventh best TV show ever made on the British Film Institute's list in 2000.
The same year he played the role of Sergeant Putnam in Richard Attenborough's Oscar-winning biopic Gandhi, before starring in the BBC's 1983 adaptation of Shakespeare's classic play Henry VI, in which he played the Duke of York.
He would later be cast as Captain Edward Smith in James Cameron's massive film Titanic.
In the 1997 film, he played the captain of the infamous ship on what would be its first and only voyage across the Atlantic Ocean, before going down with the ship after it struck an iceberg.
The actor, depicted as King Theoden, received praise for his portrayal of the aging monarch who tries to protect his people from the forces of evil.
The actor also played the Duke of Norfolk in the 2015 adaptation of Hilary Mantel's Wolf Hall. Pictured: Bernard Hill at the Wolf Hall in Gloucester in 2014
Hill also received praise for his portrayal of Captain Edward Smith in the 1997 drama Titanic. Pictured: The actor on set as Captain Smith
The actor pictured with Steven MacKintosh in From There to Here, a 2013 series about the IRA bombing in Manchester
Bernard Hill pictured with his wife Marianna Hill at the premiere of Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers in 2002
It marked the beginning of a late career renaissance for Hill, who was subsequently cast by Peter Jackson in the role of King Theoden in the Lord of the Rings trilogy.
The actor was praised for his portrayal of the embattled King of Rohan, who bravely fights to save his people from the forces of evil.
Hollywood kept calling, with Hill making appearances in Dwayne Johnson vehicle The Scorpion King, Halle Berry horror film Gothika and the tennis-themed romantic comedy Wimbledon.
He continued to appear regularly on British television before being cast in the BBC drama Wolf Hall in 2015.
Adapted from Hilary Mantel's historical fiction about the rise of Thomas Cromwell, Hill portrayed the Duke of Norfolk in the show's first series, before being replaced by Timothy Spall in the second.
He is due to return to our screens once again tonight, with a role in Martin Freeman's BBC show The Responder.
The actor lived in Suffolk and is survived by his wife Marianna Hill and their son Gabriel.
More to follow…