Natasha Richardson

1963-2009

The theatres on Broadway dimmed their lights in tribute to the loss of Natasha Richardson, the Tony-winning actress who inspired us with her charm and grace and left us too soon...

She leaves behind, her husband Liam Neeson, sons Michael and Daniel, mother Vanessa Redgrave and sister Joely Richardson.

Tributes from fellow actors...

Natasha's uncle, Corin Redgrave (Forsyte Saga, Persuasion), led the tributes to his ­'adorable' and 'generous' niece. 'I've been very, very sad all day and all night. She was adorable, Natasha, she really was, besides being, as we know, a marvellous actress. We shall miss her terribly.'

Helen Mirren says, “Natasha was a great actress, a fantastic mother, a loving wife and a whirlwind of energy, with an infectious love of life expressed firstly by her wonderful deep laugh. Anyone who knew her will be in mourning today. I hope that Liam and her sons are helped in their pain by the great love and sympathy that is coming to them from people all over the world.”

Meryl Streep added, “Tash was the warm sun in the center of a large constellation of family, friends, all of those lucky enough to know her - she is irreplaceable in our lives; she gave us so much, so generously - her legacy is the love that connects us all.”

Ralph Fiennes, Richardson's co-star in The White Countess and Maid In Manhattan, said: She was a star. A great actress, a beautiful woman, a fiercely loyal friend, a brilliant and generous companion. She was an adoring and loving wife and mother. She was unique. I cannot imagine a world without her wit, her love, her mischief, her great, great talent and her gift for living. I loved her very much.'

Dame Judi Dench : She had an incredibly luminous quality that you seldom see, and a great sense of humour. I thought she was a really great actress and seemed to simply shine in both film and theatre.It's always difficult if you have parents in theatre, it puts a very strange pressure on the children.I have no doubt [great work was to come]. It's been so shocking, really shocking - I hope everyone leaves the family alone to pick up the pieces.

Matthew Broderick: 'Natasha was a very close friend of our family, so it's been a very, very sad few days and I think it will stay that way for a good while. It's hard to say.'

Sam Mendes: 'Natasha combined the best of Redgrave and Richardson: the enormous depth and emotional force of a great actor on the one hand, and the intelligence and objectivity of a great director on the other. She was one of a kind, a magnificent actress. She was also an amazing mother, a loyal friend, and the greatest and most generous host you could ever hope to meet. It defies belief that this gifted, brave, tenacious, wonderful woman is gone.

Director Ken Russell: I chose Natasha because of her ephemeral delicacy and intelligent beauty in her debut stage role as Nina in The Seagull. Natasha was under pressure having such an enormously complex burden for her first film role, but she was always poised, prepared, focused and very, very bright. She was a talented person, full of skill, insight, poetry and searing intellect.Then there is that translucent physical beauty of Natasha's, which, alas, almost upstaged her. Her physical presence was so unique and warm, inviting yet cool, vulnerable yet proud. Her beauty was golden, that's the word that keeps coming to mind. A chip off her mum's perfect bone structure, yes - but her very own blend of tenderness and fire. She was one of the few modern actresses who was as smart as she was pretty, and as gentle as she was fierce. I loved her unashamedly.

Alex Simon who interviewed her said it well, " If there were a single, defining word for Natasha Richardson that carried through her very diverse 35 film appearences, it would be grace. Grace of presence, of movement, of just being. A rare quality that, and one which will be sorely missed." The Hollywood Interview: The Best Q's and A's and News



Natasha in an interview discussed working with her mom in Evening.

Big sister Natasha with baby Joely