Much-respected actor appeared in

BRITISH actor Adrian Schiller’s “sudden and unexpected” death has been announced by his agent.

On Wednesday, Schiller – known for playing rich ealdorman Aethelhelm in Netflix historical series The Last Kingdom and steward Cornelius Penge in ITV royal drama Victoria – died at the age of 60.

Scott Marshall Partners, who represented him for more than three decades, said in a statement: “He has died far too soon, and we, his family and close friends, are devastated by the loss.

“His death was sudden and unexpected and no further details around its cause are yet available.

“A prodigiously talented actor, he had just returned from Sydney, where he had been appearing in The Lehman Trilogy and was looking forward to continuing the international tour in San Francisco.”

Schiller was also known for his appearances in Death In Paradise and historical dramas The Musketeers on the BBC and The Devil’s Whore on Channel 4.

He was recently seen in January as a criminal, named Drake Underwood, in an episode of BBC detective series Father Brown.

Also known for his theatre work, Schiller was among the cast in Second World War play The White Factory at Marylebone Theatre last year.

His agent said he “enjoyed a varied and successful career across all media”.

“Our deepest condolences go to his family, who ask for privacy at this most difficult of times,” the statement also said.

The White Factory writer Dmitry Glukhovsky wrote on Instagram that Schiller performed “brilliantly” as Chaim Rumkowski and “without him, our piece would have not been the same”.

Schiller also appeared in A Touch Of Frost, Raised By Wolves, Residue,

The Hollow Crown, Doctor Who, New Tricks, Being Human, Silent Witness, Prime Suspect, Judge John Deed and My Family.

Paying tribute, the outgoing director of the National Theatre Rufus Norris said he was “deeply saddened and shocked” by the loss of a company member.

“Adrian was a wonderful actor, and the National Theatre had the pleasure of working with him throughout the breadth of his career,” he added, in the statement shared on social media.

“His recent performance as Henry Lehman in the Australian premiere of The Lehman Trilogy was superb and his presence within the company will be greatly missed.”

Schiller took to the stage in productions of Every Good Boy Deserves Favour, The Veil, The Captain of Kopenick, The Hour We Knew Nothing of Each Other Le Bourgeois Gentilhomme