ACTRESS NATASHA Richardson, the wife of actor Liam Neeson and part of the Redgrave acting dynasty, has died, a family spokesman said shortly before midnight last night.
"Liam Neeson, his sons, and the entire family are shocked and devastated by the tragic death of their beloved Natasha. They are profoundly grateful for the support, love and prayers of everyone, and ask for privacy during this very difficult time," Los Angeles-based spokesman Alan Nierob said in a statement.
The 45-year-old star died at Lenox Hill Hospital in New York after suffering a serious head injury in a fall at a Canadian ski resort. Her husband, actor Liam Neeson (56); mother, Oscar-winning actress Vanessa Redgrave (72); and two sons, Michael (13) and Daniel (12) were with her at the hospital.
The accident happened while the actress was taking a supervised skiing lesson on a beginners' run at the luxury Mont Tremblant resort in Quebec on Monday.
She showed no visible sign of injury after the fall but was brought to the bottom of the slope by a ski patrol and told she should see a doctor. About an hour later she started feeling unwell and was taken to hospital.
Neeson flew from the set of his new film in Toronto to be with his wife as soon as he heard news of the accident.
Richardson was flown from Canada to New York, where she and her family live, for further treatment last night.
Show business website TMZ.com reported today she was unconscious, had "non-reactive" pupils and was suffering from "major head trauma" as she was taken by ambulance to Lenox Hill Hospital.
A stream of family members and well-wishers arrived at the hospital overnight and through today.
Adrienne Cleere, a former magazine publisher who described herself as an acquaintance of the family, said: “It is heartbreaking, she was a wonderful woman.”
Part of one of Britain’s great theatrical dynasties, Richardson is the daughter of Vanessa Redgrave and the late director Tony Richardson.
She was also the granddaughter of Sir Michael Redgrave and Rachel Kempson, the sister of actress Joely Richardson, and the niece of Lynn Redgrave.
Born in May 1963, Richardson was educated at St Paul’s Girls School in London and trained at the city’s Central School of Speech and Drama. She married Schindler’s List star Neeson in 1994 after the pair met on the set of the film Nell.
Her extensive experience on stage includes a number of Shakespearean roles including Ophelia in Hamlet and Helena in A Midsummer Night’s Dream.
In 1986, she won the London Drama Critics’ most promising newcomer award for her performance as Nina in The Seagull, alongside her mother. She also won a Tony award for best actress in a musical for her performance as Sally Bowles in Sam Mendes’s production of Cabaret on Broadway in 1998. – (PA)