Poldark Star Angharad Dies Aged 63

Welsh actress Angharad Rees has died after a long battle with pancreatic cancer.

Rees, who starred in BBC drama series Poldark in the mid 1970s, also enjoyed an extensive theatre career.

Poldark, the story of an 18th-century Cornish mining family, was one of the most successful TV drama series of all time.

It drew UK audiences of 15 million at its peak and was sold to 40 countries.

A statement released by her family said: "The family of Angharad Rees (McAlpine) are deeply saddened to announce that Angharad passed away peacefully with her family at her bedside in London, after a long battle with pancreatic cancer.

"She will be greatly missed by her family and friends."

Rees was married to the late Dynasty actor Christopher Cazenove for more than 20 years and they had two sons together, Linford and Rhys, 35.

Linford, the elder of the two, died in a car crash on the M11 in Essex in 1999, aged 26.

Rees and Cazenove had divorced in 1994. He died in 2010.

In 2005 Rees married David McAlpine, of the McAlpine construction dynasty, and lived with him in London.

Rees, who played Demelza in Poldark, also had a role in cult classic Jack the Ripper film Hands Of The Ripper, while on stage she appeared in A Winter's Tale, Richard II and Romeo And Juliet.

In addition to her acting success, she also founded an eponymously titled jewellery design company based in Knightsbridge, with her pieces featured in the film Elizabeth, The Golden Age.

Her family said she remained an active supporter of the arts and was an honorary fellow of the Royal Welsh College Of Music & Drama in Cardiff.

Her funeral will be private, but there are plans for a service in celebration of her life which will be announced at a later date.