Carry On and Harry Potter legend Leslie Phillips has died after battling illness at the age of 98.
The much-loved veteran actor's sad death was confirmed on Tuesday as his agent, Jonathan Lloyd, confirmed that he had died 'peacefully in his sleep' yesterday.
Leslie passed away on Monday following a long battle with illness after he previously survived two strokes.
The legendary actor, who was 90 at the time of his strokes which were only six months apart, is most famous for his role in Carry On, but he has starred in dozens of films, including Harry Potter - where he starred as the sassy sorting hat.
After his Carry On success, Phillips went on to star in Doctor in the House, Tomb Raider and Midsommer Murders.
Phillips also fought in World War 2 from 1943 as a Second Lieutenant in the Royal artillery.
The veteran actor first appeared on the West End stage at the tender age of 14.
His last appearance came eight decades later when he appeared as the much-loved voice of the sorting hat in Harry Potter.
In tribute following his death, Leslie's wife Zara Carr, 63, said: “I've lost a wonderful husband and the public has lost a truly great showman.
"He was quite simply a national treasure. People loved him. He was mobbed everywhere he went.
"When we married he cheekily introduced me to the Press as royalty, insisting I was the new Zara Phillips and that I was related to the Queen."
Phillips' glittering career spans over eight decades and he has starred in over 200 movies, TV and radio series.
For 17 years he starred alongside Ronnie Barker and Jon Pertwee on BBC radio show ‘The Navy Lark', and he was also an accomplished Shakespearian actor.
Despite his incredible film and TV accolades, Phillips was best known for his role in the 'Carry On' and ‘Doctor’ comedy films in the 1950s and 60s.
While he only starred in four of the 31 ‘Carry On’ movies, Phillips confessed that his famous catchphrases including 'Well hello', and 'I say', followed him for the rest of his career.
Phillips' death leaves Jim Dale, 86, as the only surviving regular Carry On star after Barbara Windsor’s death in 2020.
The actor joined the Carry On cast after giving up a Hollywood career to be with wife, Penny Bartley, and their four children who lived in England.
Phillips later revealed he loved being 'idolised' by the public, but he also wished that people would 'look beyond the lecherous twit I played'.
His character had a particular fondness for women, and Phillips previously joked that his wandering eye and telling catchphrases from the Carry On films would 'follow him to the grave'.
Earlier this year, Phillips opened up about surviving two strokes eight years ago.
At the time, he told The Mirror: “I’m too young to pop off just yet. I’ve got everything to live for."
The actor suffered the stroke on a bus near his home in Maida Vale, north London on the way back from shopping on Oxford Street.
It was his wife, Zara Carr, who ultimately ended up saving his life.
Phillips survived the ordeal because his wife, who is 36-years his junior, sounded the alarm early.
Doctors said he wouldn’t have made it if it wasn’t for his wife's fast response.
Talking about the ordeal, Zara previously said: “Thank God I was there to save his life.”
She told the Daily Mail: “Leslie suddenly started leaning on me and was unable to put a ticket in his coat pocket. He had terrible pains in his left arm so I stopped the bus and called an ambulance which took him to University College Hospital in Euston.”
The actor did recover, but just six months later, Leslie and Zara found themselves in a similar position once again.
Phillips suffered a second minor stroke, but he was resuscitated by his wife this time.
The second time around, his symptom was a minor seizure, which made him turn 'black and blue'.
He was given tests at St Mary’s Hospital in Paddington but spent the night at home.
Previous to this, shortly after his wedding to Zara, Phillips had to call off their honeymoon so that doctors could inspect a facial lump.
At the time, he underwent surgery to remove the lump, which thankfully, wasn’t cancerous.
He told the Sunday Mirror at the time: "We won't be going on the honeymoon straight away because I'll be in hospital.
“I have to get this thing removed. Thank God, it isn't cancer. It just looks rather awful at the moment but I am getting that sorted. We have been for all the appointments and the next part will be in a couple of weeks."
After he suffered the two strokes, Phillips underlined his commitment to carry on living and survive a stroke by begging the Queen to give him a knighthood.
Phillips was desperate for the ultimate honour after his OBE was upgraded to a CBE in the New Year Honours List in 2007.
The veteran star of 200 film classics including the “Carry On” and “Doctor” series, had met the monarch many times but was irked that he had not yet been made a Sir.
As he slowly recovered at the time, he was well enough to joke that Her Majesty should 'get a move on' if she intended knighting him.
At his wedding in 2014, Phillips had introduced his third bride as Zara Phillips, in reference to Her Majesty’s own grand-daughter of the same name.
“It is time her gran made me a knight, after all, my Zara’s virtually married into royalty,” Leslie quipped at the time.
Following the news of Leslie's sad passing, tributes have poured in from his celebrity pals and admirers.
