Leslie Phillips

He spent eight decades in show business before passing away on Monday following a protracted illness.

Leslie Phillips won over a new generation of fans as The Sorting Hat in the Harry Potter movies in addition to the Carry On movies.

His 63-year-old wife Zara paid tribute to him by saying: "I've lost a beautiful husband and the public has lost a truly terrific showman.

Simply put, he was a national treasure. Everyone adored him. Everywhere he went, there was a mob.

When we got married, he played the press by insisting that I was the new Zara Phillips and a descendant of the Queen.

He co-starred for 17 years with Ronnie Barker and Jon Pertwee in the popular BBC radio programme "The Navy Lark."

Leslie, a skilled Shakespearian actor, has performed on stages all around the world.

But he was most remembered for playing the slick-talking bad guy with a thing for ladies in the comedy movies "Carry On" and "Doctor" from the 1950s and 1960s.