007 star Pierce Brosnan hails Sean Connery for "leading the way for us all who followed"

Brosnan wrote: "Sir Sean Connery, you were my greatest James Bond as a boy, and as a man who became James Bond himself. You cast a long shadow of cinematic splendor that will live on forever. You led the way for us all who followed in your iconic foot steps.

"Each man in his turn looked to you with reverence and admiration as we forged ahead with our own interpretations of the role. You were mighty in every way, as an actor and as a man, and will remain so till the end of time. Your were loved by the world, and will be missed. God bless, rest now, be at peace."

Sir Sean's son Jason, now a director, told the BBC that his father had been "unwell for some time".

He added that Sir Sean "had many of his family, who could be in the Bahamas, around him" when he died.

He said: "We are all working at understanding this huge event as it only happened so recently, even though my dad has been unwell for some time. A sad day for all who knew and loved my dad and a sad loss for all people around the world who enjoyed the wonderful gift he had as an actor."

His wife, Micheline Roquebrune, told the Mail on Sunday that Connery "got his final wish to slip away without any fuss... I was with him all the time and he just slipped away. It was what he wanted."

His publicist Nancy Seltzer said there would be a private ceremony initially and a memorial "yet to be planned once the virus has ended".

Brosnan succeeded Timothy Dalton as 007 and made four films in the iconic franchise, beginning with GoldenEye in 1995 and finishing with Die Another Day in 2002. He was later told by Bond producers Barbara Broccoli and Michael G Wilson that the super spy would be recast and the role went to Daniel Craig, whose first outing as 007 was 2006's Casino Royale.

Sir Sean was recently voted the greatest James Bond of all time by RadioTimes.com readers.

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