‘James Bond’ star Roger Moore dead

Bern, May 23 (IANS) Former "James Bond" star Roger Moore, known for his swashbuckling looks and piercing gaze, has died after a short but brave battle with cancer, his family said. He was 89.

Moore died on Tuesday in Switzerland, it was announced by his family on social media, reports telegraph.co.uk.

"With the heaviest of hearts, we must share the awful news that our father, Sir Roger Moore, passed away today. We are all devastated. The love with which he was surrounded in his final days was so great it cannot be quantified in words alone," the message shared on the actor's official Twitter account read.

Moore was the third actor to play British secret agent James Bond, in seven feature films released between 1973 and 1985. He was one of the most suave actors to take on the iconic hero's role in "Live and Let Die", "The Man with the Golden Gun", "The Spy Who Loved Me", "Moonraker", "For Your Eyes Only", "Octopussy" and "A View to a Kill".

He enjoyed worldwide popularity not just for his acting filmography, but also philanthropic work.

His family said: "We know our own love and admiration will be magnified many times over, across the world, by people who knew him for his films, his television shows and his passionate work for Unicef, which he considered to be his greatest achievement.

"The affection our father felt whenever he walked on to a stage or in front of a camera buoyed him hugely and kept him busy working into his 90th year, through to his last appearance in November 2016 on stage at London's Royal Festival Hall.

"The capacity crowd cheered him on and off stage, shaking the very foundations of the building just a short distance from where he was born."

There will be a private funeral in Monaco as per Moore's wish, the statement revealed, reported telegraph.co.uk.

The statement was signed by his children Deborah, Geoffrey and Christian.