Kate Beckinsale Celebrates Late Dad Richard on What Would Have Been His 77th Birthday

The star’s father, actor Richard Beckinsale, died of a heart attack in 1979 when she was only 5 years old

Kate Beckinsale is remembering her late father, Richard Beckinsale.

On Saturday, July 6, which would have been the actor's 77th birthday, Kate — who was just 5 when Richard died of a heart attack in 1979 — shared a special Instagram post to commemorate his special day.

The English actress, 50, included several childhood photos with Richard and her mom, actress Judy Loe, as well as some of Richard’s career moments, including the cover of his 1973 film The Lovers! and a newspaper article with a cheeky headline that read: “Why can’t Richard act his age?”

Related: Kate Beckinsale Honors Late Stepfather on His Birthday amid Her Health Issues: ‘Oh God I Miss You’

She kept her message simple, writing, “Happy birthday Daddy,” but fielded a few questions about Richard — who was a notable TV and film actor in the U.K. prior to his sudden death at the age of 31 — in the comments.

“Didn’t know your dad played guitar. Did he ever record any music?” one user asked, and Kate replied: “Just at home. Most of my memories of him are playing guitar and singing Dylan etc.”

Another person wrote that Richard “made my childhood much happier x,” to which the actress responded, “and mine at first and then a lot sadder.”

Earlier this year, the Underworld star celebrated her dad on another milestone: the 45th anniversary of his death. The anniversary came just two months after the star’s stepfather died suddenly following “a brief period of illness.”

Kate marked the anniversary of Richard’s death with a collection of photos of herself, her mother and Richard — and wrote a message to her father.

“The day you died comes round so suddenly even when I’m expecting it,” she began.

Related: A Timeline of Kate Beckinsale's Recent Health Issues

Then, referring to the recent loss of her stepfather, Kate wrote, “This is my first year without any father figure at all for a long long time. How I miss you. How familiar this falling through an abyss. How horribly like home falling with no one to catch you feels. I hope your energies have met.”

“I’m so grateful to have had your love,” she continued. “I feel it, like an echo. X.”

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Kate, who was the only child of Loe and Richard, reflected on his legacy and death while appearing on The Howard Stern Show in 2021.

"I cannot stress to you enough how famous he was," she said of the late actor. "He was in two or three of the most iconic comedies of the period, and everybody loved him."

She also recalled the "really, really intense" days following her dad's death. "I remember confusing when John Lennon died and when my dad died because people were standing in the street with the evening paper sobbing on both occasions,” she said, “and I can't remember which version of that is which because they were so similar."

"It was really really intense... but only in England," she added. "Obviously, John Lennon impacted absolutely every country in the world. My dad was very much England."

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