Heartthrob king of the mini series

WITH his matinee-idol good looks and a six-decade long career that spanned theatre, film and television, Richard Chamberlain was said to have "looked like he had been sculpted by a loving god out of butter, honey and grace".

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The 1960s Hollywood heartthrob shot to fame in the TV medical drama Dr. Kildare and was dubbed the "king of the mini series" after starring in Shogun and the multiple award-winning The Thorn Birds, and always being cast as the handsome romantic lead.

But behind the ladies man facade, he never married or had children and felt that as a leading man, he must hide his homosexuality.

It was not until he was 68 that he publicly revealed he was gay.

"When you grow up in the 1930s, 40s and 50s being gay, it's not only it ain't easy, it's just impossible," he told reporters in 2014.