The weather has improved; the butterflies are flying.

Charlton Heston, who won the 1959 best actor Oscar as the chariot-racing Ben-Hur and portrayed Moses, Michelangelo, El Cid and other figures in Hollywood epics of the 1950s and 60s, has died at 84, his family said today.

Charlton Heston, who won the 1959 best actor Oscar as the chariot-racing Ben-Hur and portrayed Moses, Michelangelo, El Cid and other figures in Hollywood epics of the 1950s and 60s, has died at 84, his family said today.

Ridley Scott’s Kingdom of Heaven (Fox) is a mish-mash of an epic that falls well short of the standard set by such as the illustrious El Cid and Ben-Hur.

Film star Charlton Heston made his last appearance as president of the National Rifle Association today, shuffling on to the stage before a crowd of 4,000 National Rifle Association members but too weak to give a farewell speech.