Tributes have been paid to James Bond star Sir Roger Moore who has died aged 89 after a short battle with cancer.

Sir Roger, who played the legendary 007 in seven James Bond films from Live and Let Die in 1973 to A View To Kill in 1985, had visited Norwich only last year when he performed at Norwich Theatre Royal. John Bultitude, from the theatre, said: 'We are saddened to hear the news of Sir Roger Moore's death.

'He was most recently on stage with us in November last year when he brought his one-man show to the Theatre Royal for the second time, sharing anecdotes and stories with the audience and answering their questions.

'A true Hollywood legend, Sir Roger is remembered as a real gentleman by our staff who also spent a lot of time meeting many devoted fans before the show. Some had travelled from the likes of Yorkshire, Lancashire and even The Netherlands as well as from across East Anglia to see him in Norwich. Our sympathies go out to his friends, family and many fans.'

In an interview with our paper ahead of his Norwich date, when asked what was the very best time of his life, Sir Roger simply said 'today.'

'Today is the best day because there are hours of it still to come. All the rest of my life has already happened,' he explained.

As James Bond, Sir Roger also shared the big screen with some Norfolk stars. In the 1977 film The Spy Who Loved Me he drove a Lotus Esprit which was transformed into a submarine for an underwater fight sequence in the Bahamas, and in the 1981 film For Your Eyes Only he drove two more Lotuses.

Among those to lead tributes to Sir Roger was was former Bond girl Jane Seymour who co-starred in Live and Let Die and described Sir Roger as 'My Bond.' On Instagram she said: 'Roger taught me what a movie star really was and should be.'

Joan Collins, who guest-starred in Sir Roger's early 1970s series The Persuaders!, said: 'Devastated to hear about my good friend @sirrogermoore. He was the kindest, warmest, wittiest gentle man.'

Off-screen Sir Roger was respected for his charity work. He was a long-term supporter and goodwill ambassador for Unicef, and received a knighthood for his humanitarian work. Sir Roger's children confirmed the actor's death in Switzerland in a post on his official Twitter account.