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Director Minghella dies aged 54 Director Anthony Minghella dies
(about 12 hours later)
British film director and writer Anthony Minghella has died at the age of 54, his agent has said. British film director and writer Anthony Minghella has died aged 54.
Minghella, whose films include Truly, Madly, Deeply and Cold Mountain, was chairman of the British Film Institute. Minghella's films included The English Patient - which earned him an Oscar for best director in 1997 - as well as Truly, Madly, Deeply and Cold Mountain.
In 1997, he won an Oscar for directing The English Patient and was also Oscar-nominated for writing the screenplay for 1999's The Talented Mr Ripley. He suffered a haemorrhage in London days after having surgery for cancer of the tonsils and neck, his US agent Leslee Dart said.
He has also directed a TV episode of book The No 1 Ladies' Detective Agency, due to be screened this Easter. Jude Law, who worked with Minghella on three films, said he was "deeply shocked and saddened" at the news.
A 90-minute pilot, directed by Minghella and co-written with Richard Curtis, is due to be broadcast on BBC One. The actor described him as "a brilliantly talented writer and director" and "a sweet, warm, bright and funny man".
He was one of Britain's greatest creative talents, one of our finest screen writers and directors Gordon Brown In quotes: Minghella tributesSend us your comments
Law's co-star in The Talented Mr Ripley, Gwyneth Paltrow, said Minghella was "a wonderful man" who was "so interested in art and making the world better for art".
Actor Kevin Spacey praised the director as "one of the greats".
Film producer and friend Lord Puttnam said the industry would be "very shocked" to lose their "very well-loved" colleague.
"He started as a writer, he was not a stylist as a director," he said. "He saw himself as a storyteller and his films were very well told, beautifully made and beautifully acted."
UK Prime Minister Gordon Brown, who was directed by Minghella in a Labour Party broadcast before the 2005 General Election, also paid tribute.
CAREER HIGHLIGHTS Cold Mountain (2003 - pictured)The Talented Mr Ripley (1999)The English Patient (1996)Truly, Madly, Deeply (1991) He said: "He was one of Britain's greatest creative talents, one of our finest screen writers and directors, a great champion of the British film industry and expert on literature and opera."
Minghella had an operation for cancer last week, his representatives said.
Leslee Dart said: "The surgery had gone well and they were very optimistic. But he developed a haemorrhage last night and they were not able to stop it."
He died at about 0500 GMT on Tuesday at the Charing Cross Hospital in Hammersmith, west London.
Minghella's other roles included being chairman of the British Film Institute.
He had also directed a TV episode of book The No 1 Ladies' Detective Agency.
A 90-minute pilot, directed by Minghella and co-written with Richard Curtis, is due to be broadcast on BBC One on Easter Sunday.
Minghella received nine Bafta and three Oscar nominationsBBC film correspondent Tom Brook, speaking in New York, said Minghella was held in "very high regard by the artistic community".
"He's certainly one of the top directors of his generation in Britain and, in Hollywood he was definitely held in high esteem," he said.
Minghella began his career as a writer with his early radio plays winning several awards.Minghella began his career as a writer with his early radio plays winning several awards.
CAREER HIGHLIGHTS Cold Mountain (2003 - pictured)The Talented Mr Ripley (1999)The English Patient (1996)Truly, Madly, Deeply (1991)
He made his directorial debut in Truly, Madly, Deeply, in 1991.He made his directorial debut in Truly, Madly, Deeply, in 1991.
He went on to write and direct film adaptations of Michael Ondaatje's The English Patient and Patricia Highsmith's The Talented Mr Ripley.He went on to write and direct film adaptations of Michael Ondaatje's The English Patient and Patricia Highsmith's The Talented Mr Ripley.
He also directed 2003's Cold Mountain, starring Jude Law, Nicole Kidman and Renee Zellweger, who won the best supporting actress Oscar for the film. In 1999, he was nominated for an Oscar for writing The Talented Mr Ripley screenplay.
In 2005, Minghella directed his first opera, an English National Opera production of Madama Butterfly, at the company's Coliseum home, in London. He also directed 2003's Cold Mountain, starring Law, Kidman and Renee Zellweger, who won the best supporting actress Oscar for the film.
When he took on the role of chairman of the British Film Institute (BFI) in 2003, he told the BBC: "We're not getting enough movies made here, our studios aren't busy enough, we don't have enough studios. In 2005, Minghella directed his first opera, an English National Opera (ENO) production of Madama Butterfly.
"We're not good at lassoing the talent we have here and containing it within the British Isles, and we should all be working to address that."