Have you ever cried at the death of a celebrity ?

When Alan Rickman died I teared up a bit. Mostly I was in shock (even though he lost a lot of weight and cancelled movies and appointments in the few weeks before his death).

Nice point Johartuk when our Kids TV heroes pass away it always seems said - Brian Cant one of the greatest of that era with the late great John Noakes plus the still very much with us Peter Purvis and Johnny Ball.

Incidently I noticed Brian's son Richard Cant is part of RSC ensemble this year, he certainly has a strong resembelance to his Dad. I've never seen Richard on stage or heard his normal speaking voice but if he sounded like his father then it would bring back fond memories to many generations.

Yes, Victoria Wood and Dame Diana Rigg for me.

I was shocked at the death of Victoria Wood, and very sad indeed when John Inman died , I’ve heard he was very good to work with. Similarly the pantomime dame Jack Tripp (no apologies for mentioning him again), yet another consummate performer, like John Inman , a true professional and a true gentleman. I think for me it’s not just the end of an era, but I have such happy memories of these performers . Edita Gruberova (opera singer) and Cesaria Evora (singer from Cape Verde) are two others who I had a real sense of grief for,

Yes recently, Meat Loaf. I listened to his music and tears came, more than once. My dad played him a lot when I was growing up so he's always been in my consciousness, it felt odd he's no longer with us.

Also, I didn't cry but Stephen Gately was a sad one. My first record was Boyzone and he was my favourite. Far too young at 33.

Not theatre related, but... Mark Hollis.
I'd always hoped our paths would cross somehow, as crazy as that sounds. His untimely death crushed that dream.

George Michael. It was just out of the blue, and at Christmas which is already an emotional time.

River Phoenix & Kurt Cobain.

Shane Warne was a shocker

Although he was England's tormentor in Chief for many years, he was an amazing cricketer and it is out of the blue.

I've become more emotional about celebrity deaths as I get older. Perhaps my cold stone heart is softening, but I think it's that I can relate more to them, or at least those left behind.

I was still quite young when Diana died, and while I felt bad for her kids, but if anything I was annoyed at what seemed to be a world had gone mad, especially the ones having a go at the Queen for staying at Balmoral (where Diana's kids were too) instead of being in London to show respect or whatever.

Fast forward to Prince Philip's death, which shouldn't be nearly as sad, but I felt it more. It wasn't really Philip I was sad about, but despite being very different, it made me think about one of my grandpa's (he walked about with his hands behind his back), and then I started to think about all of the lockdown deaths. His death and subsequent funeral became a lightening rod for my feelings on that.

The nature of modern media makes it easier to immerse yourself in whatever details are available about the celebrity's death, and you can very quickly access news and video footage of them doing all of the things that made people love them. When I was young most dead celebs seemed old anyway, and I could forget about it as soon as the news moved onto the weather.

These days I can well up at at the deaths of a celebrity I don't care for much if I think about their family or even the sadness fans who didn't know them either.

George Michael's death is the one that still gets me. I still listen to his music, and it's so emotive. I've always loved him, but I've come to appreciate the depth of his lyrics more as I age, and it sometimes catches me off guard that he isn't with us any more.