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(ARCHIVES) In this file photo taken on April 5, 2019, British actress Diana Rigg arrives to receive the Icon Award during the opening ceremony of the 2nd Cannes International Series Festival (Canneseries) at the Palais des Cannes Film Festival, South of France. . (Photo by Valery HACHE / AFP)
LONDON – Theater and screen stars paid tribute Thursday to Diana Rigg, the award-winning British actress who rose to fame on the 1960s television series “The Avengers” and gained new fans on “Game of Thrones.” after his death at age 82. .
Rigg, who won Emmy, Tony and Bafta awards during his long career on both sides of the Atlantic, passed away six months after being diagnosed with cancer.
Simon Beresford, her agent, said in a statement that she had died “peacefully” early Thursday morning at her home with her family, who had asked for privacy.
“Dame Diana was a much loved and admired member of her profession, a force of nature who loved her work and her fellow actors,” he added. “We are going to miss her very much.”
Rigg’s daughter, actress Rachael Stirling, said her mother “spent her final months reflecting with joy on her extraordinary life, filled with love, laughter and deep pride in her profession.”
“I will miss her beyond words,” he added.
Rigg worked at the Royal Shakespeare Company (RSC) after his classical training at the prestigious Royal Academy of Dramatic Art (RADA) in Great Britain.
But it was like Emma Peel in a catsuit and John Steed in a Patrick Macnee bowler hat on the swashbuckling television spy series “The Avengers” that he became a household name.
Some saw the high-scoring action role as a symbol of the new power of women in the heyday of the 1960s, earning her an international profile and a legion of fans.
For Rigg it was a catapult to success as she became one of Britain’s most important character actresses, many of them displaying the same intelligence and steel as Ms. Peel.
“Diana Rigg’s combination of strength of personality, beauty, courage and sheer emotional power made her a great classical actress, one of an astonishing generation of British performing artists,” said theater and opera director Jonathan Kent.
“Her dazzling wit and inimitable voice made her an unforgettable leading figure in British theater.”
‘A smile for all’
In an early role, she played the famous James Bond wife Tracy in the 1969 film starring George Lazenby, “On Her Majesty’s Secret Service.”
Producers of the Bond franchise, Michael G. Wilson and Barbara Broccoli, praised Rigg’s performance as the only woman who led the fictional superspy to the altar.
“The legendary stage and screen actress … was loved by Bond fans for her memorable portrayal of Tracy di Vicenzo in ‘On Her Majesty’s Secret Service,’ the only woman to ever marry James Bond,” they said.
In the later stages of her career, Rigg earned legions of younger fans and critical acclaim for her role as Olenna Tyrell on the popular series “Game of Thrones.”
Other film roles included the 1994 comedy-drama “A Good Man in Africa,” adapted from a William Boyd novel, and the 2017 biographical drama “Breathe,” directed by Andy Serkis.
“For half her life, Diana was the most beautiful woman in the room, but she was what used to be called a Trouper,” said playwright and screenwriter Tom Stoppard, who said her talent was “luminous.”
“He went to work with his sleeves rolled up and a smile for everyone,” he added.
‘Dazzling’
However, Rigg will be best remembered as one of the greats of British theater.
She won the Tony Award for Best Actress in 1994 after playing the title role in the Greek tragedy “Medea” in both London and New York, and also won the Emmy Award for Best Supporting Actress for the 1997 miniseries “Rebecca.” .
Veteran playwright David Hare said she had “a dazzling turn of direction in middle age as a great classical actress.”
“She swept everything in front of her,” he added about several of his most outstanding performances.
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