Damian Lewis pays special tribute to late wife Helen McCrory

Homeland actor Damian Lewis has paid a special tribute to his late wife, Peaky Blinders actress Helen McCrory, who tragically passed away from breast cancer last April at the age of 52.

In a special commemorative night at the National Theatre, Damian recited the poem Everything Is Going To Be All Right by the Irish poet Derek Mahon. 

To an enraptured audience, Damian spoke the words:

“There will be dying, there will be dying,

but there is no need to get into that.”

Another poignant quote reads, “The sun rises in spite of everything and the far cities are beautiful and bright.”

Addressing the audience, Damian said, “This evening is dedicated to her and it's perfect because Helen loved the National Theatre,” adding, “One person whose thunder would absolutely not be stolen was Helen McCrory.”

Helen herself also recited a poem during the evening, as a video played on the big screen of the late actress reciting a poem from a previous event. As reported by The Mail Online, Damian sat and listened with his eyes closed as the video played.

Taking to Twitter on April 16, 2021, Damian announced the heartbreaking news that his wife Helen lost her “heroic battle with cancer”.

“I'm heartbroken to announce that after a heroic battle with cancer, the beautiful and mighty woman that is Helen McCrory has died peacefully at home, surrounded by a wave of love from friends and family,” his statement read.

As well as being a proud mother to her 14-year-old daughter Manon and her 13-year-old son Gulliver, Helen was well known for her many, much-loved performances in various productions.

Some of her acting credits include Peaky Blinders, where she played Polly Gray, her formidable performance as Narcissa Malfoy in the Harry Potter franchise, her iconic appearance in the James Bond film, Skyfall, as Clair Dowar MP, along with her many award-winning stage credits.