As I’m sure you’re all now already aware, legendary British actor Sir Patrick Stewart has died, aged 86. His Instagram account announced the news yesterday, saying he died at home in Los Angeles surrounded by friends and family, following “a brief and poignant journey with Alzheimer’s Disease and Lewy Body Dementia”.

Stewart, a poised and charming actor, was probably best known for his on-screen roles as Captain Jean-Luc Picard in Star Trek: The Next Generation, and Charles Xavier-slash-Professor X in various X-Men films. But he also enjoyed a long and celebrated career on stage.

Stewart appeared in games, too, most notably in Bethesda’s fourth Elder Scrolls game, Oblivion, as Emperor Uriel Septim 7th. He effectively kicked the adventure off, narrating the game’s intro with gravitas before appearing as Septim to the player in their prison cell. There, he declared he’d seen the player in his dream and proceeded to let us free.

The Elder Scrolls 4: Oblivion Remastered – Official Reveal Trailer

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“I️ was born 87 years ago,” Stewart’s opening monologue began. “For 65 years I’ve ruled as Tamriel’s emperor. But for all these years I’ve never been the ruler of my own dreams. I have seen the gates of Oblivion, beyond which no waking eye may see. Behold, in darkness a doom sweeps the land. This is the 27th of Last Seed, the year of Akatosh 433. These are the closing days of the Third Era, and the final hours of my life.”

Bethesda, upon hearing of Stewart’s passing, posted a picture of Emperor Uriel Septim from the recent Oblivion remaster, alongside the words: “Rest in peace to Sir Patrick Stewart – an emperor, a captain, and an inspiration to us all. Our thoughts are with his loved ones.”

Stewart also notably voiced the narrator in both of MercurySteam’s Castlevania: Lord of Shadows games, and appeared in a number of X-Men games and Star Trek games, as well as smaller projects like Polish Holocaust game My Memory of Us. In honour of his life and work, The Star Trek Online community gathered in large numbers, arranging spaceships in long lines to mark his passing.

Messages celebrating the person Stewart was have flooded social media overnight, written by the many people he impacted during his life and long career. Long-time X-Men collaborator and Wolverine actor Hugh Jackman said: “We lost one of the greats of stage and screen today. And, in my book, a tremendous friend and man. I learned so much from him. I will miss you, Patrick Stewart, all of my days.”

And Sir Ian McKellen, the Magneto actor who was considered one of Stewart’s best friends, gave an overview of the many years the two had known each other, from being “ambitious young actors with the Royal Shakespeare Company half a century ago”, to working on X-Men together. McKellen recalled cautioning Stewart about taking the lead role in Star Trek because of the effect it would have on his stage career – advice Stewart fortuitously overrode. McKellen referred to his friend as “the most respected and beloved actor of his generation on either side of the Atlantic”.

Rest in peace, Sir Patrick Stewart. There won’t be another like you.