I was saddened by the recent death of Sir John Mills. We feel we have lost a favourite uncle.

During the Second World War, we went to the pictures two or three times a week and saw him in a string of memorable movies - Great Expectations, Scott Of The Antarctic, This Happy Breed, In Which We Serve, Tunes Of Glory, Ice Cold In Alex and many more.

In Hobson's Choice, he played the wonderful character of Willie Mossop, a downtrodden fellow who triumphs in the end when he marries the boss's daughter.

He started as a chorus boy on the London stage and was at one time quite a dancer. He was also fortunate enough to have a wife, Mary Haley Bell, with whom he was in love for more than 60 years, and a lovely family.

My favourite of his movies is The Way To The Stars, written by Terence Rattigan and directed by Antony Asquith. John Mills played Peter Penrose, an RAF officer. Although set on an airfield, it is not a war film but the story of friendships forged between the crews and the locals, then the arrival of the American aircrews and new friendships formed. As children in wartime, we remember such events clearly.

In Ryan's Daughter, for which he won an Oscar for Best Supporting Actor, he played the village idiot Figum Michael.

What wonderful memories we have of the great Sir John Mills and the great days of British film making.

-Joy Linford, Hove