Colin Welland, the ‘Chariots of Fire’ Oscar winner, has died aged 81.

His family said in a statement that he had suffered from Alzheimer’s disease for several years but died peacefully in his sleep last night.

Lancashire-born Welland’s early work included playing Mr Farthing in the Ken Loach classic ‘Kes’ (see below).
Roles in ‘Straw Dogs’ and ‘The Sweeney’ followed, but his most famous part was PC David Graham in the hit BBC show ‘Z-Cars’.

In the late 1970s he moved into screenwriting. After penning ‘Yanks’ (with Richard Gere and Vanessa Redgrave) in 1979, he wrote his masterpiece, the Oscar-winning epic ‘Chariots Of Fire’ in 1981.

The drama about pair of runners competing in the 1924 Olympics won four Academy Awards, including one for Welland.

Accepting his Best Original Screenplay gong (see below), he famously declared: “The British are coming!”

The phrase has now passed into pop culture.
In a statement released via his literary agent Anthony Jones, his family said: “Colin will be desperately missed by his family and friends.

“Alzheimer’s is a cruel illness and there have been difficult times but in the end Colin died peacefully in his sleep.

"We are proud of Colin’s many achievements during his life but most of all he will be missed as a loving and generous friend, husband, father and granddad.”

Welland is survived by his wife Patricia, four children and six grandchildren.


Tempus fugit