Diana Rigg death: Nikolaj Coster-Waldau leads tributes to Game of Thrones star

Legendary actor has died aged 82

The cast of Game of Thrones have paid tribute to Diana Rigg, who has died aged 82.

News of the actor’s death was shared on Thursday (10 September) afternoon, with her agent saying saying: “She died peacefully early this morning. She was at home with her family who have asked for privacy at this difficult time.”

Rising to fame in the 1960s, Rigg was best known for appearing in the iconic series The Avengers as Emma Peel, as well as playing Bond girl Countess Teresa di Vicenzo in On Her Majesty's Secret Service.

In recent years, she found fame again as Tyrell family matriarch Olenna in Game of Thrones, during which she quickly became a fan favourite.

Tributes to Rigg were led by her co-stars from the HBO fantasy series, with actor Nikolaj Coster Waldau, who starred opposite Rigg as Jaime Lannister in some of her most memorable scenes, writing: “Dame Diana Rigg. She always raised the bar with her incredible talent, intelligence and wit. An absolute joy and honor to work with. May her soul Rest In Peace.”

Rigg as Lady Olenna Tyrell in ‘Game of Thrones’ (HBO)

Gwendoline Christie, who played Brienne of Tarth, wrote on Instagram: “Dame Diana Rigg 20.07.38 - 10.09.20 Fabulous soul. Brilliant actor. Sensational mind.

“What an honour it was to work with you; you showed such generosity and incredible razor-sharp wit - a hilarious, iconic master class on How To Do It. Tolerated no nonsense and delivered every time. We were so lucky to have you! Inspiration forever!”

Oberyn Martell actor Pedro Pascal also shared a picture of Rigg to Instagram simply captioned: “The true queen of Westeros.”

Nathalie Emmanuel, who played Missandei, wrote: “An icon and powerhouse left this world today... Rest in Peace Diana Rigg”, while the official Game of Thrones Twitter account posted: “Be a dragon. The realm will always remember Diana Rigg.”

Throughout her long and varied career Rigg worked on a huge range of projects in TV, film and theatre, with many actors and creatives sharing their fondest memories of her.

Stephen Merchant tweeted: “RIP Dame Diana Rigg. Great actress and good sport – lest we forget, she let Daniel Radcliffe flick a condom on her head in Extras.”

George Takei also wrote: “The screen and stage has lost a giant, Dame Diana Rigg, at age 82. It was too soon for you to leave us, but we are grateful for decades of your art, from Medea to Bond, to more recently GoT and Avengers. Rest among the heroes now, Dame Rigg.”