FRINTON actor Giles Watling has paid tribute to Oscar-winning British film star Richard Attenborough, who has died aged 90.

Lord Attenborough, who died on Sunday after being ill for a number of years, was one of Britain’s most successful leading actors.

He appeared in films for more than 60 years, including Brighton Rock, The Great Escape and Jurassic Park, and he also directed Gandhi, which won two Oscars.

Attenborough was a life-long friend of Giles’ father Jack Watling, who also starred in more than 50 films, including The Power Game in 1965.

Giles, 61, of Holmbrook Way, Frinton, had known Attenborough all his life.

He said: “Dickie was always a man of the people and, no matter how far up the ladder he went, he never forgot those struggling around the bottom rungs.

“He dedicated himself to many charities and I had the privilege of being part of that world with him.

“Every time I saw him, he would take time to chat and ask after the family. He really was a genuinely lovely man."

Read the full tribute in the Clacton Gazette, out now.