Ian Gelder, the British actor who capped his half-century career by appearing in the hit series Game of Thrones as Kevan Lannister, brother of feared patriarch Tywin Lannister, died on Monday. He was 74.
His death was announced by his husband, fellow actor Ben Daniels, who said in a social media post that Gelder had been diagnosed with bile duct cancer in December. Gelder’s agent, Daniel Albert, also confirmed his death.
Over a 50-year career in television, film and theater, Gelder appeared in the beloved British sci-fi show Doctor Who and its spinoff Torchwood, as well as in a television adaptation of His Dark Materials, the trilogy of fantasy novels by Philip Pullman.
He appeared in 12 episodes of Game of Thrones as Kevan Lannister, starting in the first season when his character was a military adviser for his older brother, Tywin, as the House Lannister battled House Stark.
He reprised the role in the fifth season as a player in the power struggle that resulted from Tywin’s death. Kevan Lannister was killed off at the end of the sixth season alongside many other characters when Cersei Lannister blew up the Sept of Baelor.
Born June 3, 1949, Gelder began appearing in television shows in the 1970s, including New Scotland Yard and Edward the King. He also starred in theater productions such as Gods and Monsters and Titus Andronicus at London’s Globe Theater.
He and Daniels started dating in 1993, when they were both cast in the play Entertaining Mr. Sloane, according to IMDb. Daniels appeared in The Crown and a 2016 television adaptation of The Exorcist.
Information about Gelder’s survivors was not immediately available.
His final TV appearance was this year, on an episode of Father Brown.
Published 08 May 2024, 06:25 IST