It has been announced that actor Alan Rickman has died. He was 69 and had been suffering from cancer.

Rickman was probably best known for his role as Snape in the Harry Potter films. He was an eminent classical performer but also a skilful comic actor who knew when not to take himself too seriously. Most famously he was the villain in the first Die Hard movie and played the Sheriff on Nottingham in 1991's Robin Hood: Prince of Thieves with a panto glint in his eye.

He was also one of the high points of the sci-fi movie Galaxy Quest and was in the ensemble cast of the Richard Curtis comedy Love Actually. He was not seen but was the voice of Marvin the Paranoid Android in the 2005 film version of The Hitchiker's Guide to the Galaxy.

On TV he appeared with Ruby Wax and was considered for a role in Red Dwarf, but went on to film success instead.