Oscar-winning playwright Tom Stoppard has died aged 88

London, UK - British playwright Tom Stoppard, who won an Oscar for the screenplay for the 1998 movie Shakespeare In Love, has died at the age of 88, United Agents said on Saturday.

British playwright Tom Stoppard poses with the award for Best Play "Leopoldstadt" in the Radio Hotel press room during the 76th Tony Awards, in New York City on June 11, 2023.
British playwright Tom Stoppard poses with the award for Best Play "Leopoldstadt" in the Radio Hotel press room during the 76th Tony Awards, in New York City on June 11, 2023.  © ANGELA WEISS / AFP

"We are deeply saddened to announce that our beloved client and friend, Tom Stoppard, has died peacefully at home in Dorset, surrounded by his family," the talent agency said.

"He will be remembered for his works, for their brilliance and humanity, and for his wit, his irreverence, his generosity of spirit and his profound love of the English language," it said.

"It was an honour to work with Tom and to know him."

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To non-theater-goers, Stoppard is best remembered for his work in cinema, which included the Indiana Jones and Star Wars franchises.

Notably, he won an Oscar in 1999 for his screenplay for Shakespeare in Love, which scooped a total of seven Academy Awards that year.

Born in Czechoslovakia in 1937, he fled his home during the Nazi occupation and found refuge in Britain. After leaving school, Stoppard became a journalist and later a playwright.

Over a six-decade career, he wrote for the theatre, TV, and radio, as well as film, and won multiple awards.

In 1997, he was knighted by the late Queen Elizabeth II for his services to literature.

Stoppard was married three times and had four sons – one of whom, Ed Stoppard, is an actor.

Cover photo: ANGELA WEISS / AFP

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