RIP
Beloved British actress Dame Diana Rigg has died at the age of 82.
“She died peacefully early this morning. She was at home with her family who have asked for privacy at this difficult time,” her agent confirmed.
Rigg became an icon by starring as Emma Peel in the classic 1960s spy show The Avengers, and played a Bond girl in 1969’s On Her Majesty’s Secret Service.
While The Avengers might make people think of superheroes these days, the British TV series, which ran from 1961 to 1969, was unrelated to the Marvel Comic. Diana Rigg appeared on the show in its fourth and fifth season as superspy Emma Peel, and became an instant fashion icon.
Then in 1969, she became the only woman to marry James Bond in On Her Majesty’s Secret Service. While that film was often mocked as it featured George Lazenby’s one appearance as 007, it is has a cult following amongst Bond fans for breaking a lot of rules of the series – not least the downbeat final scene, where Rigg’s Tracy di Vicenzo is murdered on her wedding day.
Born in 1938, Diana Rigg’s acting career spanned five decades. She appeared in movies as diverse as The Great Muppet Caper, the 1986 version of The Worst Witch, and the cult horror classic Theatre of Blood.
Her final movie will be in the new film from Edgar Wright, Last Night in Soho, which is due to be released next year.
In 2013 she was introduced to a new generation when she played Olenna Tyrell. The matriarch of House Tyrell, Olenna was of course poisoned Joffrey Lannister, and her final words – “Tell Cersei, I want her to know it was me” – was one of the show’s most memorable lines.
She was most recently seen playing Mrs Pumphrey in the new adaptation of All Creatures Great and Small, which is currently airing on Channel 5.
