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Damian Lewis pays heartfelt tribute to Helen McCrory: 'She's been a meteor in our life'

Photo credit: Mike Marsland
Photo credit: Mike Marsland

Damian Lewis has shared a moving tribute to his late wife, Helen McCrory, after she died of cancer, aged 52. He announced the tragic news on Friday 16 April.

The actor likened McCrory to a "meteor" as he described how she had "shone more brightly in the last months than you would imagine even the brightest star could shine". In a lengthy and heartfelt piece written for The Sunday Times, Lewis praised his wife's "fearlessness, wit, curiosity, talent and beauty".

"I've never known anyone so consciously spread happiness. To say 'please' and 'thank you' and 'you're so kind' as much as she did," Lewis wrote. "Even when dying in her last few days, when talking to our wonderful carers, she repeatedly said, 'thank you so much' in her half delirious state."

Photo credit: David M. Benett
Photo credit: David M. Benett

He talked of how McCrory - who was best known for her roles in Peaky Blinders and Harry Potter - had prepared their two teenage children for life. “She has exhorted us to be courageous and not afraid," he said. "As she said repeatedly to the children: ‘Don’t be sad, because even though I’m about to snuff it, I’ve lived the life I wanted to.’”

McCrory told Lewis that, after she died, she wanted him to move on and meet someone new. “She said to us from her bed: ‘I want Daddy to have girlfriends, lots of them, you must all love again, love isn’t possessive, but you know, Damian, try at least to get through the funeral without snogging someone,’” he said.

Lewis and McCrory met in 2003 when they acted opposite one another at a play held at London's Almeida Theatre. They got married in 2007.

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