
English actor Robert Hardy – best known for his portrayal of Cornelius Fudge, the Minister for Magic in the Harry Potter franchise – passed away on August 3, 2017. He was 91 years old.
Hardy’s family announced his death and paid tribute to an actor saying: “Gruff, elegant, twinkly, and always dignified, he is celebrated by all who knew him and loved him, and everyone who enjoyed his work. We are immensely grateful to the team at Denville Hall (a London retirement home for actors) for the tender care they gave during his last weeks.”
Timothy Sydney Robert Hardy was born on October 29, 1925 in Cheltenham, England. In addition to briefly serving in the Royal Air Force, Hardy received a BA in English from Magdalen College, Oxford University.
Across his 70-year career, Hardy also had repeated roles as Winston Churchill and Franklin D. Roosevelt. His most notable portrayal of Churchill, in Winston Churchill: The Wilderness Years, won him a BAFTA award in 1981.
Between 1952 and 1956, Hardy was married to Elizabeth Fox and had one son, Paul. Hardy remarried Sally Pearson and had two children, Justine and Emma. This marriage lasted between 1961 and 1986. He is survived by all three children.