As the year draws to a close, it is time to remember the figures from the worlds of arts and entertainment who died in 2020. Here is a look back at some of those we said farewell to.
January
The new decade began with the deaths of Yes Minister actor Derek Fowlds, Monty Python star Terry Jones and long-time Just A Minute host Nicholas Parsons. We also lost:
- TV medium Derek Acorah
- Scottish entertainer Tom Alexander
- Author Marion Chesney Gibbons, aka MC Beaton
- Upstairs, Downstairs actor Christopher Beeny
- Oscar-winning basketball star Kobe Bryant
- Coronation Street actor Neville Buswell
- BBC Radio Ulster presenter Stephen Clements
- This Life producer Tony Garnett
- The Graduate screenwriter Buck Henry
- Ugly Betty creator Silvio Horta
- Rocky Johnson, father of ‘The Rock’
- Highlander actor Stan Kirsch
- US folk singer David Olney
- Rush drummer Neil Peart
- Christopher Tolkien, son of JRR Tolkien
- Prozac Nation author Elizabeth Wurtzel
February
This was the month that Hollywood legend Kirk Douglas left us at the age of 103. It was also the month that TV presenter Caroline Flack died aged 40. We also lost:
- US actor Orson Bean
- US actor Robert Conrad
- TV astronomer Heather Couper
- Friday Night Dinner star Frances Cuka
- US novelist Clive Cussler
- Gang Of Four guitarist Andy Gill
- Theatre director Terry Hands
- Wild Geese mercenary ‘Mad Mike’ Hoare
- Suspense novelist Mary Higgins Clark
- Bristol music scene champion Naoki Iijima
- Hidden Figures inspiration Katherine Johnson
- Shoestring actor Michael Medwin
- Nigerian trumpeter Victor Olaiya
- US rapper Pop Smoke
- Mash co-creator Gene Reynolds
- Mazzy Star co-founder David Roback
- Ladysmith Black Mambazo founder Joseph Shabalala
- British actor John Shrapnel
- Queen of Katwe actress Nikita Pearl Waligwa
- BBC broadcaster Simon Warr
- Music manager Tom Watkins
- DJ and producer Andrew Weatherall
March
This was the month we said goodbye to comedian Roy Hudd, country singer Kenny Rogers and actor Max Von Sydow, star of The Exorcist and Flash Gordon. We also lost:
- Desperately Seeking Susan actor Mark Blum
- Cameroonian saxophonist Manu Dibango
- Star Wars actor Andrew Jack
- British artist Paul Karslake
- Inside the Actors Studio host James Lipton
- Original Supreme singer Barbara Martin
- US playwright Terrence McNally
- US songwriter Alan Merrill
- Former Radio 2 presenter Pete Mitchell
- Chef and restaurateur Michel Roux
- Former BBC journalist John Stevenson
- Asterix co-creator Albert Uderzo
- US soul singer Bill Withers
April
Goldfinger actress Honor Blackman, comedian Eddie Large and Goodies star Tim Brooke-Taylor were among those who left us during the fourth month of 2020. We also lost:
- Nigerian drummer Tony Allen
- Doctor Who writer Pip Baker
- UK rapper Black The Ripper
- Ex-Telegraph editor John Bryant
- US actor Brian Dennehy
- Swedish author Per Olov Enquist
- Former Watchdog host Lynn Faulds Wood
- The Gentle Touch actress Jill Gascoine
- Northern Irish actor BJ Hogg
- Somali musician Ahmed Ismail Hussein Hudeidi
- Bollywood actor Rishi Kapoor
- Slumdog Millionaire actor Irrfan Khan
- Jazz saxophonist Lee Konitz
- Ex-BBC journalist Paul Lambert
- Welsh language lecturer Dr Tedi Millward
- Radio Caroline founder Ronan O’Rahilly
- US country-folk singer John Prine
- ASAP Mob rapper Chynna Rogers
- Little Women: Atlanta star Ashley Ross
- Songwriter Adam Schlesinger
- Chilean writer Luis Sepúlveda
- Kenyan author Ken Walibora
May
This was the month the music world bid farewell to rock ‘n’ roll legend Little Richard, Kraftwerk founder Florian Schneider and R&B singer Betty Wright. We also lost:
- Boys from the Blackstuff actor Michael Angelis
- Was (Not Was) vocalist Hillard ‘Sweet Pea’ Atkinson
- Gogglebox star June Bernicoff
- Twilight actor Gregory Tyree Boyce
- Algerian singer Hamid Cheriet, aka Idir
- Bulgarian-born artist Christo
- Magician and entertainer Roy Horn
- West African singer Mory Kanté
- Wrestler and reality TV star Hana Kimura
- Beatles photographer Astrid Kirchherr
- Playwright and activist Larry Kramer
- Pretty Things frontman Phil May
- Monty Don’s golden retriever Nigel
- French actor Michel Piccoli
- The Bill actor Tony Scannell
- My Boy Lollipop singer Millie Small
- Comedian and Seinfeld star Jerry Stiller
- Mercury-nominated UK rapper Ty
- US actor and comedian Fred Willard
June
This was the month three beloved veterans – actor Sir Ian Holm, Forces’ Sweetheart Dame Vera Lynn and comedy legend Carl Reiner – left us. We also lost:
- Beatles photographer Fiona Adams
- Hollywood producer Steve Bing
- Author James Bowen’s ‘Street Cat’ Bob
- Actor and activist Louis Mahoney
- Mash composer Johnny Mandel
- Former Pointer Sisters singer Bonnie Pointer
- Cuban singer Margarita Pracatan
- The Sweet bassist Steve Priest
- Bollywood actor Sushant Singh Rajput
- Lost Boys director Joel Schumacher
- Welsh singer Ricky Valance
- Spanish novelist Carlos Ruiz Zafón
July
This was the month we said a sad goodbye to Hollywood legend Olivia de Havilland, composer Ennio Morricone and film director Alan Parker. We also lost:
- Scottish entertainer Johnny Beattie
- Film and TV actor Earl Cameron
- Magic School Bus author Joanna Cole
- Broadway and TV actor Nick Cordero
- British novelist Josephine Cox
- Country singer Charlie Daniels
- Fairport Convention singer Judy Dyble
- Time Out founder Tony Elliott
- Fleetwood Mac co-founder Peter Green
- Mythbusters host Grant Imahara
- Primal Scream singer Denise Johnson
- Lisa Marie Presley’s son Benjamin Keough
- Bollywood choreographer Saroj Khan
- Porridge director Sydney Lotterby
- Orlando Bloom’s labradoodle Mighty
- BBC Radio Wales broadcaster Chris Needs
- US TV host Regis Philbin
- US actress Kelly Preston
- Video games streamer Reckful
- Glee cast member Naya Rivera
- Scottish actor Maurice Roeves
- Jazz singer and actress Annie Ross
- Teenage actor Lewis Sewell
- Cardiacs singer Tim Smith
- Social media star Nicole Thea
- Welsh broadcaster Andrew ‘Tommo’ Thomas
August
This month saw the unexpected death of Black Panther star Chadwick Boseman as well as the demise of Chariots of Fire actor Ben Cross. We also lost:
- Music producer Martin Birch
- Classical guitarist Julian Bream
- Cocoon actor Wilford Brimley
- Netflix documentary subject Daisy Coleman
- RuPaul’s Drag Race star Chi Chi DeVayne
- American pianist Leon Fleisher
- 1960s pop star Wayne Fontana
- Wrestler James ‘Kamala’ Harris
- Singer and actor Trini Lopez
- Capital FM producer Joe Lyons
- Granada Reports presenter Tony Morris
- Children’s author James Nash
- US media mogul Sumner Redstone
- Scooby-Doo co-creator Joe Ruby
- Red Hot Chili Peppers guitarist Jack Sherman
- Rupert Young, twin brother of singer Will
September
This was the month we said goodbye to a pair of British icons – designer Sir Terence Conran and Dame Diana Rigg, star of The Avengers and Game of Thrones. We also lost:
- Kool & The Gang founder Ronald Bell
- Synth pioneer Simeon Coxe
- Country songwriter Mac Davis
- Four Seasons singer Tommy DeVito
- Newspaper editor Sir Harold Evans
- Singer and campaigner Patti Flynn
- French singer Juliette Greco
- Forrest Gump author Winston Groom
- Playwright Sir Ronald Harwood
- Reggae pioneer ‘Toots’ Hibbert
- Welsh author and dramatist Emyr Humphreys
- The Emotions singer Pamela Hutchinson
- Classical actress Barbara Jefford
- Ozzy Osbourne drummer Lee Kerslake
- Jackass star and wrestler Stevie Lee
- Early Doors actor Rodney Litchfield
- Moonraker star Michael Lonsdale
- So Awkward actor Archie Lyndhurst
- Children’s author Sam McBratney
- Czech film director Jiri Menzel
- Bay City Rollers member Ian Mitchell
- Colombian-American DJ Erick Morillo
- Beauty blogger Ethan Peters, aka Ethan Is Supreme
- Australian singer and actress Helen Reddy
- Jackie Stallone, mother to actor Sylvester
- Z Cars actor Frank Windsor
October
This was the month we said farewell to comedian Bobby Ball, long-time BBC presenter Frank Bough and film star Sir Sean Connery, the first big-screen Bond. We also lost:
- Costume designer Bhanu Athaiya
- Actor Thomas Jefferson Byrd
- Dancer Marge Champion
- Welsh guitarist Spencer Davis
- Deondra Dixon, Jamie Foxx’s sister
- US actress Conchata Ferrell
- British journalist Robert Fisk
- Hollywood actress Rhonda Fleming
- Singer and guitarist Gordon Haskell
- Isle of Man-born photographer Chris Killip
- Les Miserables lyricist Herbert Kretzmer
- Former Emmerdale actor Johnny Leeze
- Tony Lewis of 1980s band The Outfield
- Belfast-born poet Derek Mahon
- Reggae singer Johnny Nash
- Bond actress Margaret Nolan
- British novelist Jill Paton Walsh
- Activist and filmmaker James Redford
- Paralympics dancer Dave Toole
- Rapper Brian Trotter, aka Kent Won’t Stop
- Great British Bake Off finalist Luis Troyano
- Rock guitarist Eddie Van Halen
November
This was the month we paid our respects to entertainer Des O’Connor, TV and film actor Geoffrey Palmer and the actor and comedian John Sessions. We also lost:
- Bobby Brown Jr, son of singer Bobby
- Indian actor Soumitra Chatterjee
- British journalist Robert Fisk
- Scottish entertainer William ‘Buff’ Hardie
- US actor Eddie Hassell
- Uriah Heep keyboardist Ken Hensley
- UK music agent Ben Kouijzer
- American Idol finalist Nikki McKibbin
- Travel writer and journalist Jan Morris
- Darth Vader actor Dave Prowse
- Back to the Future actress Elsa Raven
- Scooby-Doo co-creator Ken Spears
- Recording engineer Bruce Swedien
- Jeopardy! host Alex Trebek
- MasterChef Junior star Ben Watkins
December
As this most challenging of years drew to a close we said goodbye to best-selling author John le Carré and much-loved actress Dame Barbara Windsor. We also lost:
- BBC golf commentator Peter Alliss
- Conductor Kenneth Alwyn
- Star Wars actor Jeremy Bulloch
- French designer Pierre Cardin
- Former BBC sports reporter Kevin Gearey
- Israeli virtuoso violinist Ivry Gitlis
- Mad Max actor Hugh Keays-Byrne
- South Korean director Kim Ki-duk
- Friday Night Dinner actress Rosalind Knight
- TV ident designer Martin Lambie-Nairn
- Bond production designer Peter Lamont
- Mexican singer-songwriter Armando Manzanero
- Bread actress Eileen Pollock
- Country music star Charley Pride
- Tracey Beaker Returns actress Kay Purcell
- Broadway actress Ann Reinking
- Byker Grove creator Adele Rose
- Chad Stuart of pop duo Chad & Jeremy
- Steel Magnolias actress Carol Sutton
- British fashion model Stella Tennant
- Chinese pianist Fou Ts’ong
- Piano teacher Dame Fanny Waterman
- Gilligan’s Island actress Dawn Wells
- The Right Stuff inspiration Chuck Yeager
