Kate Beckinsale has paid tribute to her late father, Richard Beckinsale, on the 40th anniversary of his death. The 45-year-old was just five when her dad passed away, and posted a collection of childhood photos to her Instagram page on the sad day. Kate wrote next to the photos: "40 years is a lot of missing. Thank you so much to everyone who has been kind. Lots of love xx march19." Richard was one of the stars of sitcoms Porridge and Rising Damp, and worked alongside Ronnie Barker and Frances de la Tour. The actor died in his sleep from a heart attack aged just 31, and left behind Kate, her older sister Samantha, and wife Judy Loe.
Kate Beckinsale paid tribute to her dad on the 40th anniversary of his death
At the time of Richard's death, he was set to film the sixth and final episode of Bloomers. The five complete episodes were aired later that year. The actor was also making a television film, Bloody Kids, which had to then re-cast. In 2000, a documentary was broadcast on ITV to mark 21 years since Richard's death, called The Unforgettable Richard Beckinsale. Kate and her sister Samantha, along with their mum Judy all gave interviews in it.
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Richard Beckinsale passed away aged just 31
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In 2013, a blue plaque in Richard's memory was unveiled at his former school, College House Junior School in Chilwell. Kate, her mum and David Walliams all attended the ceremony, as did Michael Sheen. At the time, Kate spoke about the impact her father's death had on her during an interview with the Express. The Hollywood actress said: "It was a terrible loss. It’s so weird as a five-year-old to look out in the street and see people reading the paper and crying while you’re crying and your mum is crying and your granny’s crying. Even though it was the worst loss that I have experienced I was able to share it with people who genuinely, even if they didn’t know him, really seemed to love him. I feel not many people are in that position – to have lost somebody and also to feel like that’s something really relevant to other people."
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