British actor Tom Hardy has paid tribute to his “lovely friend”, cinematographer Dick Pope, following his death aged 77.
Announcing news of his death, the British Society Of Cinematographers said in a statment that Pope “was an extraordinary cinematographer whose work on documentaries, television and films was of the highest level.”
It added: “We pay tribute to our wonderful friend and colleague and our thoughts go out to his family especially his wife Pat at this difficult time.”
Venom actor Hardy, 47, posted two photos of Pope to Instagram, captioned: “Dick Pope. British cinematographer, lovely friend and all-round legend. Aug 1947 – October 2024.”
Bafta said in a post to X, formerly Twitter: “We’re saddened to hear of the passing of cinematographer Dick Pope.
“Renowned for his long-standing collaboration with Mike Leigh, Pope was nominated for two BAFTAs for his work on Porterhouse Blue in 1988 and Mr Turner in 2015.”
Pope was born in Bromley, Kent in 1947 and worked in the field of documentary before moving to TV, earning a Bafta TV Craft nomination in 1988 for his work on Porterhouse Blue, a drama starring Sir David Jason and Ian Richardson.
He also worked on 2004 film Vera Drake, with Dame Imelda Staunton, 2008 comedy Angus, Thongs And Perfect Snogging, and biographical 2014 drama Mr Turner, starring Timothy Spall, which saw Pope nominated for a cinematography Bafta award.
He also worked on 2015 film Legend about notorious London gangsters and identical twins Reggie and Ronnie Kray, who were played by Hardy.
Pope would guest tutor at schools such as the National Film And Television School (NFTS) and recently worked on the film Hard Truths which was shown at the BFI London Film Festival earlier in the month.
Why are you making commenting on The National only available to subscribers?
We know there are thousands of National readers who want to debate, argue and go back and forth in the comments section of our stories. We’ve got the most informed readers in Scotland, asking each other the big questions about the future of our country.
Unfortunately, though, these important debates are being spoiled by a vocal minority of trolls who aren’t really interested in the issues, try to derail the conversations, register under fake names, and post vile abuse.
So that’s why we’ve decided to make the ability to comment only available to our paying subscribers. That way, all the trolls who post abuse on our website will have to pay if they want to join the debate – and risk a permanent ban from the account that they subscribe with.
The conversation will go back to what it should be about – people who care passionately about the issues, but disagree constructively on what we should do about them. Let’s get that debate started!
Callum Baird, Editor of The National
Comments: Our rules
We want our comments to be a lively and valuable part of our community - a place where readers can debate and engage with the most important local issues. The ability to comment on our stories is a privilege, not a right, however, and that privilege may be withdrawn if it is abused or misused.
Please report any comments that break our rules.
Read the rules here