Full list of 154 famous celebrities, sports stars and politicians who died in 2024

Maggie Smith, Alex Salmond and Liam Payne are among the celebrities we've lost this year (Image: PA)

Famous faces from all walks of life have died in the last 12 months, including Alex Salmond, Kris Kristofferson, Ethel Kennedy and Dame Maggie Smith just to name a few.

From endlessly quotable stars of the silver screen to titans of UK and US politics, join us for a look back on the familiar faces we've lost this year and take a moment to pay tribute to their collective legacies.

Here is the full list of celebrities we've said goodbye to in 2024.

Glynis Johns is best known for her role in Mary Poppins (Image: Getty)

TV heartthrob David Soul, who portrayed “Hutch” in US cop show Starsky and Hutch, died on January 4, aged 80. Germany’s talented football player and manager Franz “Der Kaizer” Beckenbauer died on January 7, aged 78. Welsh rugby legend JPR Williams, also a British Lions full-back, died on January 8, aged 74.

Libel lawyer Richard Rampton KC, who defeated Holocaust denier David Irving in court, died on January 8, aged 82. Radio 1’s first female presenter Annie Nightingale died on January 11, aged 83. Wimbledon’s longest-serving referee and “rain man” Alan Mills died on January 18, aged 88. Singer Mary Weiss, the lead vocalist for The Shangri-Las, died on January 19, aged 75.

Sir Graham Bright, the Tory MP who ran John Major’s successful leadership challenge against Margaret Thatcher, died on January 19, aged 81. Canadian director Norman Jewison, who won Oscar nominations for In the Heat of the Night, Fiddler on the Roof and Moonstruck, died on January 20, 2024, aged 97. German record producer Frank Farian, the man behind Boney M, died on January 20, aged 97. Chelsea great Tommy Baldwin died on January 22, aged 78. “Triple threat” actress Chita Rivera of West Side Story stage fame, died on January 30, aged 91.

Alexei Navalny died in February aged 47 (Image: Getty)

US football player turned actor Carl Weathers, who found fame in the Rocky film franchise, died on February 1, aged 76. Actor Ian Lavendar, who played hapless Private Pike in Dad’s Army, died on February 2, aged 77. Jonnie Irwin, popular presenter of the property shows A Place In The Sun and Escape To The Country died on February 2, aged 50.

Welsh rugby union fly-half Barry John died on February 4, aged 79. Former Ireland taoiseach John Bruton, a key contributor to the framework for the peace negotiations in Northern Ireland, died on February 6, aged 76. Russian lawyer Alexei Navalny, a fierce critic of Russian President Vladimir Putin, died on February 16, aged 47. South African cricketer Mike Proctor, one of the game’s greatest all-rounders, died on February 17, aged 77.

The Office star Ewen MacIntosh, who played deadpan accountant “Big Keith”, died on February 21, aged 50. Actress Pamela Salem, who starred as Miss Moneypenny in the James Bond film series, died on February 21, aged 80. Charismatic Manchester City midfielder Stan Bowles died on February 24, aged 75. Corrie legend John Savident, who played booming butcher Fred Elliott, died February 21, aged 86.

Financier Thomas Kingston, who was married to Lady Gabriella Windsor, died on February 25, aged 45. Investment banker and philanthropist Lord Jacob Rothschild, a member of the Rothschild banking family, died on February 26, aged 86. TV Cook Dave Myers, one-half of the popular Hairy Bikers duo, died on February 28, aged 66.

Karl Wallinger, lead member of World Party, died in March aged 66 (Image: Getty)

Lightning-fast striker Jimmy Husband, dubbed “Skippy”, died on March 9, aged 76. Festival promoter Vince Power, the man behind Reading and Leeds festivals, died on March 9, aged 76. World Party frontman Karl Wallinger died on March 10, aged 66. Fashion designer Stephen Linard, dressmaker for the likes of David Bowie and Boy George, died on March 10, aged 64.

Singer-songwriter Eric Carmen, creator of the iconic songs All By Myself and Hungry Eyes, died on March 11, aged 74. Paul Alexander, who lived in an iron lung for almost 70 years after contracting polio at the age of six, died on March 11, aged 78. Playwright David Seidler, the Oscar-winning scriptwriter of The King’s Speech, died on March 16, aged 86. Singer Steve Harley, the frontman of rock band Cockney Rebel, died on March 17, aged 73.

American Apollo commander Thomas Stafford, who helped ease Cold War tensions after shaking the hand of his Russian counterpart in space, died on March 18, aged 93. English heiress turned IRA bomb maker Rose Dugdale died on March 18, aged 82. Richard Taylor, a tireless campaigner against knife crime following the death of his son Damilola Taylor, aged 10, in 2000, died on March 23, aged 75.

Ultravox bassist Chris Cross, co-writer of timeless tune Vienna, died on March 25, aged 71. Nottingham Forest and Liverpool defender Larry Lloyd died on March 28, aged 75. Socialist dramatist Trevor Griffiths, writer of The Play and Reds, died on March 29, aged 88.

OJ Simpson died in April, aged 76 (Image: Getty)

Circus performer Alexis Gruss, a talented acrobat and juggler, died on April 6, aged 79. Singer Clarence “Frogman” Henry, who made Ain’t Got No Home a transatlantic hit in 1957 with his gravelly vocals, died on April 7, aged 87. Footballer turned actor O.J. Simpson, cleared of the double murder of his former wife Nicole Brown and her friend Ronald Goldman, died on April 10, aged 76.

Dublin-born Joe Kinnear, who revolutionised Wimbledon’s standing in the premiership with his combative team, died on April 7, aged 77. Physicist Peter Higgs, who correctly predicted the existence of the Higgs Boson aka the “God particle”, died on April 8, aged 94. Cricketer Derek Underwood, widely considered one of England’s best-ever Test bowlers, died on April 15, aged 78.

Labour peer and MP Frank Field, a committed anti-poverty campaigner, died on April 23, aged 81. Talented and agile winger Leighton James, known as the “Welsh Wizard”, died on April 19, aged 71. Prolific conductor Sir Andrew Davis, who helmed the BBC Symphony Orchestra for 11 years, died on April 20, aged 80. American rock ‘n’ roll guitarist, Duane Eddy, who defined the distinctive “twang” sound, died on April 30, aged 86.

Bernard Hill, known for his roles in Lord of the Rings and Titanic, died in May, aged 79 (Image: Getty)

Lord of the Rings star Bernard Hill, who broke through in Alan Bleasdale’s Boys From The Blackstuff, died on May 5, aged 79. Maverick Argentinian football coach César Menotti died on May 5, aged 85. Feminist writer and journalist Dame Shirley Conran, author of 1975’s self-help book Superwoman, died on May 9, aged 91.

American film director Roger Corman, known as “King of the Bs”, died on May 9, aged 98. Canadian short story writer extraordinaire Alice Munro died on May 13, aged 92. Scottish actress Gudrun Ure, a children’s fan favourite in the Super Gran TV series, died on May 14, aged 98. Chart-topping Australian pop singer Frank Ifield, who helped propel The Beatles to fame with a support slot in 1962, died on May 18, aged 86.

Greed-driven Wall Street trader Ivan Boesky, who inspired Gordon Gekko in the 1987 Wall Street film, died on May 20, aged 87. British Olympic champion swimmer David Wilkie, the winner of three world titles, died on May 22, aged 70. Elmer Boyd, one of the detectives who arrested JFK’s killer Harvey Lee Oswald, died on May 24, aged 96. Film score composer Richard Sherman, co-creator of the Mary Poppins’ infectious song Supercalifragilisticexpialidocious, died on May 25, aged 95.

Health guru Michael Mosley died while on holiday in Greece in June (Image: Getty)

Super League’s tiny but indomitable player Rob “Mighty Atom” Burrows, who developed motor neurone disease in retirement, died on June 2, aged 41. Singer with the novelty band Black Lace, Colin Gibb, died June 2, aged 70. Janis Paige, who triumphed on Broadway in The Pajama Game, died on June 2, aged 101.

TV producer Harold Snoad, who had a big hit with Keeping Up Appearances, died on June 2, aged 88. Popular TV doctor Michael Mosley, an advocate of intermittent fasting, died on June 5, aged 67. High court judge Oliver Popplewell, who presided over Jonathan Aitken’s libel case, died on June 6, aged 96. Astronaut William Anders, who snapped the Earthrise photo while in orbit, died on June 7, aged 90.

French pop star and fashion muse Françoise Hardy died on June 11, aged 80. Superb Arsenal striker Kevin Campbell, scorer of 60 goals in 224 games for the Gunners, died on June 15, aged 54. La Dolce Vita actress Anouk Aimee died on June 18, aged 92. Screen legend Donald Sutherland, star of M*A*S*H and The Hunger Games, died on June 20, aged 88. Statistician Frank Duckworth, co-creator of the Duckworth-Lewis Method in cricket, died on June 21, aged 84.

Shannen Doherty died after a long battle with breast cancer in July (Image: Getty)

English rugby union coach Jack Rowell, who took charge of the national team from 1994 to 1997, died on July 1, aged 87. Academy award-winning screenwriter and director Robert Towne, known for Chinatown and Tequila Sunrise, died on July 1, aged 89. Film producer behind the iconic romantic epic Titanic, Jon Landau, who was also nominated for his work on Avatar, died of cancer on July 5, aged 63.

French-British actress Yvonne Furneaux, who rose to fame during the golden age of cinema in the 1950s, died on July 5, aged 98. Founding member of rock band Stealers Wheel, Joe Egan, who was best known for the 1970s hit “Stuck In The Middle With You”, died on July 6, aged 77. One of the first six-year-old students to desegregate New Orleans schools in the 1960s, American civil rights pioneer Tessie Prevost, died of complications from liver disease on July 6, aged 69.

Crooner behind the 1974 hit “Please Come to Boston”, Dave Loggins died on July 10, aged 76. NASA astronaut Joe Engle, who commanded two Space Shuttle missions, died on July 10, aged 91. Shelley Duval, an actress best known for her iconic performance in Stanley Kubrick’s The Shining, died on July 11, aged 75. Shannen Doherty, who starred in teen drama 90210 and dark comedy film Heathers, died on July 13, aged 53, nine years after being diagnosed with breast cancer. Cheng Pei Pei, the Hong Kong actress dubbed cinema’s first female action star for films including Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon, died on July 17 at 78.

Founding CNN news anchor and vocal Donald Trump supporter Lou Dobbs, who rose to prominence on the Fox News network, died on July 18, aged 78. American songwriter Jerry Fuller, who helped soundtrack the swinging ‘60s with hits including Ricky Nelson’s “Travlin’ Man”, died on July 18, aged 85. Renowned snooker player Ray Reardon, nicknamed “Dracula” for his distinctive appearance, who dominated the sport during the 1970s, died on July 19, aged 91. Blues musician Jon Mayall, who helped create the sound that dominated Britain in the 1960s, died on July 22, aged 90. Irish novelist Edna O’Brien, who scandalised her home country with her female-centric debut The Country Girls book, died on July 27, aged 93.

Prince Michael of Greece and Denmark, cousin of Prince Phillip and royal author and biographer, died on July 28, aged 85. Scottish TV personality John Anderson, known for the recognisable catchphrase “Contender, ready! Gladiator, ready!” on ITV’s Gladiators, died on July 28, aged 92. Choreographer and dance coach Robert Banas, who starred in Mary Poppins and West Side Story and was famously bowled over by a kiss from Marilyn Monroe in 1960’s Let’s Make Love, died of pneumonia on July 29, aged 90.

Mike Lynch died after his yacht sunk off the coast of Italy in August (Image: Getty)

Northern Ireland footballer Tommy Cassidy, who won 24 international caps, died on August 1, aged 73, after a six-year battle with Alzheimer's. Grammy-winning American composer Shaun Martin, who worked with Kirk Franklin and Chaka Khan, died on August 3, aged 45. Physics pioneer Tsung-Dao Lee, who became the second-youngest scientist to win a Nobel Prize in 1957, died on August 4, aged 97.

Marvel actress Connie Chiume, best known for her role in Black Panther, died on August 6, aged 72. Frontman of Maurice Williams and the Zodiacs, Maurice Williams, who rose to fame with the hit song “Stay”, died on August 6, aged 86. Former English cricket batter Graham Thorpe, who represented the country in 100 Test matches, died from “traumatic injuries” after being struck by a train on August 4, aged 55. Founder of popular US cookie brand Famous Amos, Wallace “Wally” Amos, died of complications from dementia on August 13, aged 88.

Star of the silver screen Gena Rowlands, best known for her collaborations with her director husband John Cassavetes, died on August 14, aged 94. Phil Donahue, TV host who popularised the audience participation format and hosted his eponymous programme for decades, died on August 18, aged 88. Leading literary campaigner Ruth Johnson Colvin, who was awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom by George W. Bush in 2006, died on August 18, aged 107.

Tech entrepreneur Mike Lynch, described as “Britain’s Bill Gates”, died after his superyacht was sunk off the coast of Italy on August 19, aged 59. John Amos, an American actor known for roles in “Good Times”, “Roots” and “Coming to America”, died on August 21, aged 84. Football legend Sven-Göran Eriksson, the first non-British manager of the English team, died on August 26, aged 76 following a battle with cancer.

Maggie Smith died aged 89 in December (Image: Getty)

Ugandan Olympic marathon runner Rebecca Cheptegei died after being set alight by her boyfriend on September 5, aged 33. Brazilian funk musician Sérgio Mendes, known for popularising the bossa nova genre with hits including "Never Gonna Let You Go”, died from long-covid complications on September 5, aged 83. Will Jennings, the lyricist behind Titanic's power ballad “My Heart Will Go On” and Eric Clapton’s “Tears in Heaven”, died on September 6, aged 80.

One of a handful of performers to reach EGOT status, James Earl Jones, who is best known for voicing Darth Vader in the Star Wars films and Mufasa in The Lion King, died on September 9, aged 93. Chad McQueen, son of Steve McQueen and star of The Karate Kid, died on September 11, aged 63. Founding member of Jackson 5, who saw further success under his Motown label, Tito Jackson, died of a heart attack on September 15, aged 70.

Olivier-award-winning theatre actress Barbara Leigh-Hunt, who began her career at 12 years old and went on to star in productions of Hamlet and Sherlock Holmes, died on September 16, aged 88. Kathryn Crosby, actress and wife of Bing Crosby, known for her role in The 7th Voyage of Sinbad, died on September 20, aged 90. Leading golfer Brian Huggett, who was nicknamed “The Welsh Bulldog” for his 16 wins on the European circuit in the 1960s and ‘70s, died on September 22, aged 87.

National treasure Maggie Smith, who became one of Britain’s most recognisable actresses through a seven-decade career including Downton Abbey and the Harry Potter films, died on September 27, aged 89. Charismatic country singer and Hollywood actor Kris Kristofferson died on September 28, aged 88. Ron Ely, an actor who played Tarzan in the 1960s TV series and hosted Miss America pageants in the 1980s, died on September 29, aged 86. American baseball legend Pete Rose, who won the World Series three times, died on September 30, aged 83.

Alex Salmond passed away after suffering from a heart attack in October (Image: Getty)

Jordan Klein, groundbreaking cinematographer who shot underwater sequences in the James Bond franchise, died on October 1, aged 98. Mother of Whitney Houston and soul and gospel singer in her own right, Emily “Cissy” Houston, died of complications from Alzheimer's on October 7, aged 91. Wife of US Senator Robert F. Kennedy, Ethel Kennedy, who devoted herself to human rights causes after his death, died on October 10, aged 96.

Four-time Challenge Cup and English World Cup-winning rugby player Brian Lockwood died on October 10, aged 78. The First Minister who championed Scottish independence, Alex Salmond, died after suffering from a heart attack on October 12, aged 69. Champion of equal pay for women in America, Lilly Ledbetter, who inspired the Fair Pay Act of 2009, died on October 12, aged 86. Pop singer and member of best-selling boyband One Direction, Liam Payne, died after falling from a balcony in Buenos Aires on October 16, aged 31.

American civil rights activist Thelma Mothershed Wair, who made history as a member of the Little Rock Nine group, died on October 19, aged 83. John Kinsel Senior, a Navajo code talker who transmitted messages using the native language during World War II, died on October 19, aged 107. The 54th oldest person in the world, Elizabeth Francis, died on October 22, aged 115. The world’s strongest man, Geoff Capes, who won the title twice and held the record for British shot putting, died on October 23, aged 75. Founding member of The Grateful Dead, Phil Lesh, who played six-string guitar for the band for 30 years, died on October 25, aged 84.

Quincy Jones, a titan of the modern music industry, passed away in November (Image: Getty)

Jane Godley, a Scottish comedian who found fame through her impressions of Nicola Sturgeon, died on November 2, aged 63, after battling ovarian cancer. Eight-time Grammy winner and titan of the music industry, Quincy Jones, who worked with Michael Jackson and Frank Sinatra, died on November 3, aged 91. FA Cup and European Cup winner John Dempsey died on November 5, aged 78.

First Women’s World Surfing Champion Phyllis O’Donnell, who won the title at 27 years old, died on November 6, aged 87. Elwood Edwards, the voice actor behind AOL’s trademark “You’ve Got Mail” greeting, died on November 6, aged 74. NASCAR legend and three-time Daytona 500 winner Bobby Allison died on November 9, aged 86. Frank Auerbach, a painter who arrived in England as an eight-year-old refugee from Nazi Germany, died on November 11, aged 93. Roy Haynes, a jazz drummer nicknamed “Snap Crackle” for his recognisable snare drum sound, died on November 12, aged 99.

Beloved star of the stage and screen Timothy West, whose credits include Dad’s Army, King Lear and Edward the Seventh, died on November 12, aged 90. Composer behind the iconic James Bond theme, Vic Flick, died on November 14, aged 87. Titan of the Labour Party, John Prescott, known for his no-nonsense style and loyalty to Tony Blair’s government, died on November 20, aged 86. Animal rights activist and star of The Rainmaker, Earl Holliman, died on November 25, aged 96.

Jim Abrahams, the director and writer behind comedy films Airplane! and Hot Shots! died on November 26, aged 80. Bob Bryar, drummer of the rock group My Chemical Romance and known for hits including “Welcome to the Black Parade”, died on November 27, aged 44. Frequent Woody Allen collaborator Marshall Brickman, who won an Academy Award for his work on Annie Hall, died on November 29, aged 85.

Tom Voyce died after going missing during Storm Darragh in December (Image: Getty)

World snooker champion Terry Griffiths, who won the title on his first attempt at the sport in 1979, died on December 1, aged 77. Princess Birgitta of Sweden, second oldest child of Crown Prince Gustaf Adolf and descendent of Queen Victoria, died on December 4, aged 87. Japanese singer and actress Miho Nakayama, who was named “Japan’s most beautiful woman”, died on December 6, aged 54, after being discovered unresponsive at her home.

The oldest-ever winner of a Latin Grammy Award for Best New Artist, Angela Alvarez, died on December 6, aged 97. English rugby player Tom Voyce, who had 220 Premiership appearances before retiring in 2013, died after going missing in Northumberland during Storm Darragh on December 7, aged 43.

Duncan "chase me” Norvelle, a comedian who rose to fame on the British TV circuit in the 1980s and hosted the pilot episode for the series that would become Cilla Black’s Blind Date, died on December 12, aged 66. Indian percussion player Zakir Hussain, who is credited with bringing tabla music to a global audience, died of lung disease on December 15, aged 73.