Nanny McPhee star Raphael Coleman has died, aged 25.
The actor, who played Eric Brown in the film opposite Emma Thompson, passed away on Friday, his mum, Liz Jensen, confirmed on Twitter.
‘Rest in peace my beloved son Raphael Coleman, aka Iggy Fox,’ she wrote.
‘He died doing what he loved, working for the noblest cause of all.
‘His family could not be prouder. Let’s celebrate all he achieved in his short life and cherish his legacy.’
In a lengthy post on the social media site, his stepdad, Carsten Jensen said he ‘collapsed without prior health problems’.
AT DØ UNGDer er vel ikke noget, der får en til at opleve døden som så uretfærdig og meningsløs, som når et ungt…
Geplaatst door Carsten Jensen op Zaterdag 8 februari 2020
‘I guess there’s nothing that makes you see death as unfair and meaningless as when a young person dies,’ he began.
‘It’s life itself that’s sabotaged. It just happened to my wife, Liz, whose youngest son, Raph of only 25, died last Friday.
‘He collapsed without prior health problems in the middle of a trip and could not be restored. I got to know Raph when he was six years old, and we were so close.’
‘I will never forget you, we say in a farewell greeting to the dead,’ he continued. ‘But when it’s your own child, it’s your genes, your whole body, something greater than the word I who forever refuse to accept the judgment of death.
‘Raph wasn’t my child, even though I was close to him. But I can feel it myself. I see it in his mother’s eyes, and I hear it in her voice, the irreversible loss of the most precious thing in life.’
Carsten said Raphael ran Extinction Rebellion’s social media accounts, praising him for his work with the group.
‘Raph was one of the first and most active members. Under the name Iggy Fox, he controlled the group’s use of social media, spoke at demonstrations, and was arrested again and again,’ he continued.
‘By April, he should have been in court accused of painting the Brazilian Embassy with red when the amazon jungle was standing in flames. He didn’t want a lawyer, but he wrote himself on his defense court when he died.
‘When I think of Raph, I see something that will never die, a blunt of eternity, a light beam that lives forever in young people.
‘We believe that it is us, the older generations who have something to give the young people. We believe that we are the ones who pass the baton of life to them. But I think it’s the other way around.
‘The young people remind us why we’re alive. They remind us of the purpose of life that this is the gift we must not in distraction until we have unpacked it.’
He ended the tribute simply by adding: ‘Thank you, Raph.’
Tributes poured in for the late star, with one commenting: ‘Oh my God! What a loss for all of us, such a spectacular person. The loss for you, must be unbearable. I’m so sorry.’
‘How hideously, dreadfully sad. Such a terrible loss to you, and the whole world. I am so sorry,’ another replied.
‘I am so sorry for your loss. He was the most fearless, compassionate activist I knew,’ a follower posted.
‘His integrity was an inspiration; I can’t imagine the intense dislocation for his family right now. Thank you for raising such a wonderful human.’
While a social media user added: ‘Oh my God, I cannot imagine your pain. A beautiful, beautiful child gone too soon. I am so sorry…
‘Praying for peace and blessings for you, your family and many friends.’
Raphael first came to fame back in 2005, starring in Nanny McPhee alongside Emma Thompson, Colin Firth, Thomas Brodie-Sangster and Angela Lansbury.
He went on to star in It’s Alive, in 2009, as well as The Fourth Kind and Edward’s Turmoil, and won best young actor at the British Independent Film Festival in 2010.
Raphael later turned his back on acting and turned to his studies, with his step-dad confirming he became a biologist, and travelled around the world for work.
Carsten explained he spent a year in a jungle in Costa Rica, and six months in Indonesia, before joining Extinction Rebellion.
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