Sir Tom Stoppard pictured at the 76th Annual Tony Awards in June 2023. Photo / Getty Images
Sir Tom Stoppard, the Oscar-winning playwright, has died at the age of 88.
Stoppard, who was honoured with the accolade along with a Golden Globe for the screenplay for Shakespeare In Love, which starred fellow Oscar-winner Gwyneth Paltrow, passed away peacefully at his Dorset home.
The Czech-born British screenwriter started his career as a journalist in Bristol in 1954 before he began writing plays in 1960 following a move to London.
He captivated the hearts of audiences for more than six decades with his unparalleled ability to seamlessly blend intellect, emotion and humour in his writing.
His first play was A Walk on the Water in 1960 and he was awarded a Tony Award for best play for Travesties in 1974 and was awarded the honour again for The Real Thing in 1982.
A statement from United Agents said: “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.
“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 was an honour to work with Tom and to know him.”
In a post on social media site X, Sir Mick Jagger described Stoppard as his “favourite playwright”, adding: “He leaves us with a majestic body of intellectual and amusing work. I will always miss him.”
Broadcaster Piers Morgan, in a statement on X, said: “RIP Sir Tom Stoppard, 88. Oscar-winning literary genius, and one of the world’s greatest dramatists. What a writer! Sad news.”
Stoppard’s award-winning plays such as Rosencrantz and Guildenstern Are Dead, The Real Thing and Travesties highlighted the enduring impact of art tackling complex ideas, sharp dialogue and unrivalled wit.
He also wrote prolifically for TV, radio, and film, including adapting Leo Tolstoy’s novel Anna Karenina for the 2012 film starring Keira Knightley and Jude Law, and TV series Parade’s End with Benedict Cumberbatch and Rebecca Hall – adapted from novels by Ford Madox Ford.
In 2020, Stoppard released his semi-autobiographical new work titled Leopoldstadt – set in the Jewish quarter of early 20th century Vienna – which later won him an Olivier award for best new play and also scooped four Tony awards.
He was also honoured by PEN America, the literary and human rights organisation, receiving the Mike Nichols Writing for Performance Award for the West End play which featured his son Ed Stoppard.
Born Tomas Straussler in 1937 in Zlin, Czechoslovakia, to Jewish parents, he fled his home during the Nazi occupation and found refuge in Britain where he learned a new language and his remarkable career took off.
Following a career in journalism he went on to become a theatre critic and writing plays for radio and TV, including The Stand-Ins, later revised as The Real Inspector Hound, and Albert’s Bridge first broadcast by BBC Radio.
He first made his name with hit play Rosencrantz and Guildenstern Are Dead. It premiered at the Edinburgh Fringe Festival in 1966, before it was produced for the National Theatre and on Broadway, winning four Tony awards in 1968, including best play.
Every Good Boy Deserves Favour, inspired by Stoppard’s friendship with Viktor Fainberg who had been imprisoned in Czechoslovakia by the Soviets, was first performed in 1977, before the playwright began advocating on behalf of dissidents.
Meanwhile his trilogy of plays set in 19th century Russia, The Coast Of Utopia was first staged at the National Theatre in 2002.
His most recent plays include Heroes, Rock ‘n’ Roll and The Hard Problem.
During the course of his career, he received countless accolades and honours, including being knighted by the late Queen for his services to literature in 1997.
He followed in the footsteps of laureates Harold Pinter, Hilary Mantel and Seamus Heaney winning the David Cohen Prize For Literature in 2017.
A production of his play Arcadia, which is set in an English country house across two time periods, will be on at The Old Vic in London from January.
Sign up to Herald Premium Editor’s Picks, delivered straight to your inbox every Friday. Editor-in-Chief Murray Kirkness picks the week’s best features, interviews and investigations. Sign up for Herald Premium here.