Patrick Stewart dies at 86: Star Trek's Captain Picard and X-Men's Professor X had Alzheimer's and Lewy body dementia

Sir Patrick Stewart, who played Captain Jean-Luc Picard in Star Trek and Professor Charles Xavier in the X-Men films, has died at 86. His family announced on his X account, @SirPatStew, on Thursday 29 October that he died the day before at his home in Los Angeles, in the care of his wife, Sunny Ozell.

The family said he had Alzheimer's disease and Lewy body dementia, describing his illness as "a brief and poignant journey", The Express Tribune reported. They asked that donations in his memory go to the Johns Hopkins Alzheimer's Disease Research Center Fund or the Alzheimer's Foundation of America's caregiver resources.

From Mirfield to the Enterprise

• Born 13 July 1940 in Mirfield, Yorkshire, into a poor family. A schoolteacher introduced him to Shakespeare when he was 12.
• Stage: began acting at 18 and joined the Royal Shakespeare Company in the 1960s.
• Star Trek: The Next Generation (1987 to 1994): hired at 47, he played Captain Picard in 176 episodes over seven seasons, then in four Star Trek films and the streaming series Star Trek: Picard from 2020.
• X-Men (from 2000): played Professor Charles Xavier across the film series, the role that made him known to a new generation of cinema-goers.
• Knighted by Queen Elizabeth II in 2010 for services to drama.

He was married three times and had two children.

The last role

Variety reports that Stewart's final film is Avengers: Doomsday, Marvel's next Avengers film, in which he returns as Professor X. Before his death he said, "I can't imagine retiring." Marvel Studios president Kevin Feige led tributes, and Ian McKellen, his X-Men co-star and close friend, said Stewart "wore his heart on his sleeve", Variety reported.

A Star Trek fact many fans did not know

Stewart said he nearly turned down the Picard role, and it was McKellen's advice that helped him decide, the Tribune noted. The part went on to define him: a bald, Shakespeare-trained Englishman in command of a starship, at a time when American TV rarely cast anyone like that as its lead.

Watching his work from Pakistan

Star Trek: Picard was made for Paramount+, and the X-Men films sit with Disney, so most viewers here reach them through international streaming plans paid in dollars. A dollar subscription's rupee cost moves with the exchange rate: check it with the currency converter.