The Observer's obituaries of 2023
Cultural figures we lost in 2023, remembered by those close to them
Shane MacGowan remembered by Nick Cave
One songwriter pays tribute to another, an effortlessly talented friend who had ‘a clarity of soul of the purest kind’
Barry Humphries remembered by Melvyn Bragg
The broadcaster recalls a true original who immersed himself in the roles of Dame Edna and Sir Les, and was a complicated mixture of vaudeville character and private intellectual
Michael Gambon remembered by David Hare
The playwright recalls his collaborations with the charismatic actor whose mix of mischief and vulnerability endeared him to everyone from Arthur Miller to Bill Nighy
Tina Turner remembered by Martyn Ware
Burt Bacharach remembered by Elvis Costello
Harry Belafonte remembered by David Lammy
‘He reflected the laughable complexity of the world’: Milan Kundera remembered by Florence Noiville
‘He had such a wealth of soul’: Matthew Perry remembered by Minnie Driver
Mary Quant remembered by Jasper Conran
Sir Bobby Charlton remembered by Giles Duley
The photographer who worked closely with Charlton to campaign against landmines recalls the football legend’s humour and compassion
Jane Birkin remembered by Charlotte Rampling
As English actors who first met on a film set in 60s London then made a home in France, their lives ran on parallel lines
Sinéad O’Connor remembered by Gavin Friday
Martin Amis remembered by John Banville
Glenda Jackson remembered by Gordon Brown
Julian Sands remembered by Alessandro Nivola
Betty Boothroyd remembered by David Nott
Benjamin Zephaniah remembered by Raymond Antrobus
George Alagiah remembered by Mishal Husain
