The famous faces we lost in 2008
The famous faces we lost in 2008
Some of the key personalities from the worlds of film, television, music and the arts who passed away in 2008.
Click on the links below to read and watch more about their lives and careers.
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The former ITN newscaster died in March aged 63 after suffering a stroke.
Barnes fronted all of the broadcaster's main news programmes including the flagship News At Ten.
She also worked on its now defunct news channel when it went on air in 2000, and helped launch London radio station LBC back in 1973.
Barnes' colleague Dermot Murnaghan said she was "so down to earth, so helpful but, above all, so professional".
Jeremy Beadle is remembered by co-host Henry Kelly
The television host and prankster died in January at the age of 59 after being admitted to hospital with pneumonia.
Beadle fronted a number of popular shows, including Beadle's About, You've Been Framed and Game For A Laugh.
He raised millions of pounds for charity and was awarded an MBE for his fund-raising efforts in 2001.
His first brush with fame in 1981 was preceded by careers in rock festival management and journalism.
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The Hollywood musical film star and dancer died at the age of 86 in June after suffering a heart attack.
Her fame came as a dance partner to Fred Astaire and Gene Kelly in a string of movies in the 1940s and 50s, such as Singin' In The Rain.
Charisse's trademark long legs were said to be insured for a million dollars during the height of her fame.
"Her beauty was breathtaking," said film co-star Debbie Reynolds.
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Science fiction writer Arthur C Clarke died in April, in his adopted home of Sri Lanka. He was 90.
His greatest fame came in 1968 when his short story The Sentinel was turned into the film 2001: A Space Odyssey.
His visions of space travel and computing sparked the imagination of readers and scientists alike.
In the 1940s, he maintained man would reach the moon by the year 2000, an idea dismissed at the time.
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Author Michael Crichton died of cancer in November at the age of 66.
His best-selling works, which have sold more than 150 million copies, include Jurassic Park and Disclosure, adapted for the big screen by Hollywood.
Crichton also created medical drama ER, which was one of the highest-rated programmes on US television.
Steven Spielberg, who directed Jurassic Park, said his talent "out-scaled even the dinosaurs" of the famous story.
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Soul icon Isaac Hayes died aged 65 in August. He was found next to his treadmill at his Memphis home.
The flamboyant performer with a rich, deep voice won an Oscar in 1971 for his theme to the film Shaft.
He was later known to viewers of South Park as the voice of Chef, scoring a UK number one with Chocolate Salty Balls in 1998 singing as his character.
The self-taught musician was praised for his musical influence.
Charlton Heston's acting skills praised
Film star Charlton Heston died at his home in Beverly Hills in April aged 84.
He won fame for playing a series of heroic figures in the Hollywood epics of the 1950s and 60s, including El Cid and Ben-Hur, which won him an Oscar.
In the 1970s he became a disaster movie regular, and played Jason Colby in 1980s US TV soap opera The Colbys.
Heston was also a campaigner for Civil Rights and president of the National Rifle Association.
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Emmerdale actor Clive Hornby died aged 63 in July, six months after he took a break from the soap due to ill health.
Hornby, who played Jack Sugden for 28 years, was the programme's longest serving cast member.
His character was tinged with tragedy, losing his teen sweetheart to a car accident and second wife to a fire.
The actor wore the same flat cap that he was given on his first day of what was originally a three-month contract.
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One of the few artists to be nominated for Tonys, Emmys and Grammys, she was a stalwart of Manhattan's cabaret scene.
Known for her feline drawl - and for playing Catwoman in Batman - she was once blacklisted for attacking the Vietnam War at a White House function.
But her career endured, and she won new fans later in her career with 1984 disco hit Where Is My Man.
Tributes paid to Heath Ledger
Australian film star Heath Ledger, 28, was found dead in his New York flat in January. He died from an accidental overdose of prescription drugs.
One of his standout roles was playing a lovelorn cowboy in Brokeback Mountain, which earned him an Oscar nomination.
His reinvention of the Joker in The Dark Knight prompted talk of at least a posthumous Academy Award nomination.
Ledger's untimely death was regarded as a tragic loss for the film world.
Humphrey Lyttelton talks about his knack with humour
Veteran jazz musician and broadcaster Humphrey Lyttelton died in April at the age of 86.
He was well known for presenting BBC Radio 4's comedy panel show Sorry I Haven't A Clue, and hosted Radio 2's The Best of Jazz for 40 years.
Lyttelton had been a trumpeter since 1936 and performed with his band until his final admission to hospital.
His dual talents as a musician and broadcaster were fondly remembered.
Miriam Makeba performs in concert
The South African singing star died of a heart attack in Italy shortly after a concert. She was 76.
The musician was a leading light in the struggle against apartheid, and spent 30 years living in exile.
Makeba became known as Mama Africa, and in 1965 was the first African woman to win a Grammy award.
Nelson Mandela called her "South Africa's first lady of song" and "the mother of our struggle".
Stars remember Anthony Minghella
Film director Anthony Minghella died in March aged 54 after suffering a haemorrhage following cancer surgery.
His work included screen epic The English Patient, which earned him the Oscar for best director.
Minghella, from the Isle of Wight, was also a gifted screenwriter, whose final work was the BBC adaptation of The No 1 Ladies' Detective Agency.
His unexpected death prompted a wave of tributes from film industry greats.
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Legendary Oscar-winning actor Paul Newman died aged 83 from cancer at his home in Connecticut.
In a career spanning five decades, Newman acted in some 60 films, including Butch Cassidy and The Sundance Kid and Road To Perdition.
Newman chose to retire from acting in 2007, saying he could no longer perform to the best of his ability.
The actor was hailed by Hollywood for his "extraordinary career".
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Comedy writer and producer Geoffrey Perkins died in a road accident in August. He was 55.
The former head of BBC TV comedy had a host of hit shows to his credit, including producing the Hitchhiker's Guide To The Galaxy and Father Ted.
He worked closely with Harry Enfield on his self-titled show and was executive producer for The Fast Show.
Host and comic actor Angus Deayton said Perkins was "universally loved".
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He wrote The Caretaker and The Birthday Party, while his work in film included The French Lieutenant's Woman.
A campaigner for free speech, he later become a passionate opponent of the UK's foreign policy.
The West End cast of his play No Man's Land paid tribute to him to a silent audience on Boxing Day.
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Film actor Roy Scheider died from cancer in February at the age of 75.
He was most recognised for playing the police chief in the Jaws movies, but his roles in The French Connection and All That Jazz gained him Oscar nods.
In the 1990s he played the captain of a futuristic submarine in the TV series SeaQuest DSV.
Jaws co-star Richard Dreyfuss called Scheider a "knockabout actor" - a professional who simply got on with it.
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Stage and screen star Paul Scofield died in March at the age of 86 at a hospital near his Sussex home.
He won two Oscars during his career, including best actor for A Man For All Seasons in 1967.
Scofield was one of the most renowned theatre actors, taking on many of the great Shakespearian lead roles.
Simon Callow, one of his co-stars, said that Scofield was "an absolutely towering actor".
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Children's television presenter Mark Speight was found hanged at Paddington station in April. He was 42.
His suicide came after the death of his fiancee Natasha Collins at their home in London from a drugs overdose.
Speight was the popular host of CBBC creative show SMart for a decade, familiar with his blond spiky hair and boundless enthusiasm.
His father later formed a charity to nurture artistically gifted youngsters.
TV actress Kathy Staff died aged 80 in December after a long illness.
Actor Peter Sallis pays tribute to Kathy Staff
She was best known for playing legendary battleaxe Nora Batty in evergreen sitcom Last of The Summer Wine for 243 episodes.
The Manchester-born star also played Doris Luke in ITV soap Crossroads, also notching up appearances in Coronation Street and Open All Hours.
Summer Wine co-star Peter Sallis said she was an "irreplaceable" colleague.
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Levi Stubbs, one of legendary Motown band The Four Tops, died at his home in Detroit in October at the age of 72.
Stubbs, renowned for his rich, baritone voice, sang on the group's big hits including Reach Out (I'll Be There).
They were inducted into the US Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1990.
Abdul Fakir is the only surviving original member of the act, which has sold 50 million records worldwide.
posted by Entertaiment News @ 5:43 AM
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