Corin Redgrave

LONDON (AP) - Corin Redgrave, a member of a British acting dynasty that includes his sisters Vanessa and Lynn, has died at the age of 70.

The Redgrave family said the actor died Tuesday after falling ill at home on Sunday. His wife, Kika Markham, said he died in a London hospital, "surrounded by his family."

Corin Redgrave was less famous than his sisters, but still had success on stage and screen, appearing in dozens of television shows and movies, including "A Man for All Seasons," and "Oh! What A Lovely War" and "Four Weddings and a Funeral" - in which he played Hamish, the hapless groom of wedding number three.

Known also for his radical political stands, Corin Redgrave was a Marxist who protested against the Iraq War, campaigned for the closure of the Guantanamo Bay detention camp and spoke out in defense of political dissidents. He was a longtime member of the tiny Workers Revolutionary Party, and along with his sister Vanessa in 2004 founded the Peace and Progress Party, which ran several candidates in the 2005 national election.

Corin Redgrave was born July 16, 1939, the son of matinee idol Michael Redgrave and Rachel Kempson, a famous beauty who also had a long theater and film career.

His professional stage career began in 1961 with "A Midsummer Night's Dream" at London's Royal Court Theatre, and continued for almost four decades. He won a Laurence Olivier Award in 1998 for his performance as Boss Whalen in Tennessee Williams' "Not About Nightingales."

In 1995 he wrote a book about his father, "Michael Redgrave: My Father," which was praised for its honest treatment of the older Redgrave's bisexuality.

In 2005 Redgrave received the Pragnell Shakespeare Birthday Award for his work promoting the life and works of the Bard.

Redgrave had been diagnosed with prostate cancer in 2001, but continued performing and campaigning.

The family was struck by tragedy last year when Vanessa Redgrave's daughter Natasha Richardson, also a successful actress, died after hitting her head while skiing in Canada.

Corin Redgrave is survived by his wife, sons Luke, Harvey and Arden and a daughter, actress Jemma Redgrave. Funeral details were not immediately available.


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