Omar Sharif, star of Dr Zhivago and one of the world’s greatest bridge players, has died aged 83.

The star of Doctor Zhivago, Funny Girl and Lawrence of Arabia died of a heart attack in Cairo on Friday, according to his agent Steve Kenis.

In May his son revealed the star had been suffering from Alzheimer’s. His son, with ex-wife and fellow actor Faten Hamama, and two grandsons survive him.

Sharif, who was one of the few Arabic actors to achieve mainstream Hollywood success, grew up in Cairo, Egypt. In an interview in 2012 he recalled how his mother would socialise with King Farouk before doling out regular beatings to her son.

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