Star Wars icon Carrie Fisher failed to recover from the massive heart attack she suffered last week and has died in hospital in Los Angeles
Star Wars icon Carrie Fisher has died in hospital, four days after suffering a heart attack on a transatlantic flight.
The 60-year-old, who became an international screen star and sex symbol when she appeared as Princess Leia in the 1977 sci-fi blockbuster, was taken ill on a flight from London to Los Angeles on December 23.
She had been in Britain publicising her new book, The Princess Diarist, and filming her role in Channel 4 comedy Catastrophe.
In a statement released on behalf of Carrie’s daughter Billie Lourd, spokesman Simon Halls said: “It is with a very deep sadness that Billie Lourd confirms that her beloved mother Carrie Fisher passed away at 8.55 this morning.
“She was loved by the world and she will be missed profoundly. Our entire family thanks you for your thoughts and prayers.”
With a big personality, a history of addiction and a long, varied showbusiness career, Carrie Fisher had her share of highs and lows.
As the world mourns the death of the actress, let's look at her Hollywood life and times: Hollywood royalty
Her mother is Debbie Reynolds and her father the late crooner Eddie Fisher. They divorced when she was two after her dad decamped to marry Elizabeth Taylor.
Suffering from mental illness, and drug and alcohol addiction during much of her life, Carrie became an outspoken advocate for those issues.
Shampoo
Before Star Wars came 1975's Shampoo, starring Warren Beatty as a Beverly Hills hairdresser.
Carrie was Lorna Karpf and her mum reportedly wasn’t thrilled about the character’s use of profanity.
Star Wars
Who can forget that cinnamon-bun hairdo as Princess Leia in the original trilogy, from 1977 to 1983. She later reprised the role, including a turn in Star Wars: The Force Awakens last year.
Postcards From The Edge
This 1990 film directed by Mike Nichols was based on a screenplay she wrote, which was based on her 1987 semi-autobiographical novel of the same title.
Meryl Streep starred as movie actress Suzanne Vale, looking to rebuild her life after a drug overdose.
Wishful Drinking
It’s the title of her one-woman stage show and autobiography. A version of the stage production screened on HBO in 2010.
She followed up this year with a memoir, The Princess Diarist, based on diaries she kept while filming the original Star Wars trilogy.
Celebrities have been paying tribute to her on social media, including William Shatner and Stephen Fry...
Carrie Fisher, October 21, 1956-December 27, 2016. RIP
