Zulu actor Ivor Emmanuel dies, 80

Ivor Emmanuel was both a West End and Broadway theatre star

Ivor Emmanuel, renowned for his rendition of Welsh song Men of Harlech in the classic film Zulu, has died.

He was born in 1927, in Pontrhydyfen, near Port Talbot, the same village as fellow actor Richard Burton.

The Hollywood star helped give him his theatrical break, and he became a popular TV name in the 1950s.

He will probably be best remembered for 1964's Zulu, showing the British Army, many of them Welsh, defying an attack at Rorke's Drift in South Africa.

Roles on Broadway followed and he made guest appearances on shows such as Morecombe and Wise and Benny Hill.

Emmanuel began his working life in the mines and steelworks of south Wales after a stray German bomb killed his father, mother and sister during World War II.

At the age of 20 he unsuccessfully auditioned for the D'Oyly Carte Opera Company.

It was Ivor who held Zulu together - he was the lynchpin Ellen Baker, widow of Zulu star and producer Stanley Baker

Not long after, Richard Burton, who was two years older, helped him win a part in Oklahoma in London's West End, which launched his career.

A leading role in the Welsh language music programme Gwlad y Gan (Land of Song) in the late 1950s helped give him a large following.

But to modern audiences he will probably be best remembered for the film Zulu which dramatised the 1879 battle for Rorke's Drift.

At a crucial moment, as the British troops wait for another onslaught, he leads them in a stirring performance of Men of Harlech to counteract the Zulu war chants.

The film was produced by and starred fellow Welshman Stanley Baker, whose widow Ellen said: "It is a terribly sad day.

"It was Ivor who held Zulu together - he was the lynchpin and I just adored him. He was the sweetest most gentle man."

Richard Burton's niece Sian Owen said: "He was renowned for his voice.

"It was amazing with Ivor - even though he was a big star in his own right he never really realised it, which is what made him even more charming."