Kate Beckinsale Unearths Emotional Poem by Dad Richard in Response to Helicopter Crash Tragedy That Killed Kobe Bryant and 8 Others

Kate Beckinsale shared a poem written by her late father, Richard this week in reference to the death of Kobe Bryant. Beckinsale mourned along with the rest of the world this week, and felt her dad’s words were resonant with the latest news. Fans thanked Beckinsale for sharing the poignant poem.

Beckinsale’s parents, Richard Beckinsale and Judy Loe were both prominent actors in the 1970s, performing on both the stage and the screen. Richard passed away suddenly in 1979, shocking his family and his fans. He was just 31 years old.

In many ways, Richard’s passing was similar to that of Bryant this weekend. It left the same void in his industry, and caused the same wave of grief throughout the world. It made sense, therefore that Beckinsale was thinking about her dad and his writings.

Beckinsale posted a simple poem consisting of two stanzas of four lines each. She explained that her father had written it “not long before he died very young,” and she hoped it would help “everyone hurting today.”

“It hurts your heart / And softens your soul / When you see a man / Die,” it read. “Long before / Even before / Only before / He’s old.”

Beckinsale included a purple and yellow heart emoji in the caption to her post, making it clear that she was referencing Bryant’s passing. Fans got the message, leaving mournful comments of their own.

“I remember your dad’s passing, such a great actor and very promising, it was a sad time especially so young, breaks me to bits though to know you was actually there,” one fan wrote. “Your mum must be one strong amazing character to get you through that to become the extraordinary woman you have become.”

Richard Beckinsale made his TV debut in 1969, and went on to star in several lauded TV shows, mostly on the BBC. While filming the last few episodes of the sitcom Bloomers in 1978, he began to experience dizzy spells, and at least one black-out. He visited a doctor who told him that he was perfectly healthy, though co-stars said that he continued to look worse and worse over the next few months. Beckinsale died in his sleep in March of 1979.

“It is such a shock that someone as young and obviously fit as him should die so suddenly,” Richard’s co-star Frances de la Tour told The Belfast Telegraph at the time. “He used to play a lot of charity soccer. But the terrible thing is that he was a family man. I am most distressed for his family.”