Elstree Studios has paid tribute one of its brightest stars.

Sir Roger Moore died aged 89 on Tuesday, May 23 after a battle with cancer.

He was due to be the guest of honour at an event celebrating 60 years of filming for television at the studio.

READ MORE: Sir Roger Moore was a 'good old-fashioned gentleman' during time in Elstree

Managing Director of Elstree Studio Roger Morris said: “We are saddened to hear the news of Sir Roger Moore’s passing.

“We were looking forward to welcoming back Sir Roger to celebrate the anniversary of The Saint at Elstree Studios this year.

“We already have a plaque locally and a neon saint sign hanging high on Stage 7.”

The actor kick-started his career in television series The Saint, which was the longest-running series of along with The Avengers, which also filmed at the studio.

The James Bond star came back to Elstree in 2006 when he was presented with a plaque in his honour to celebrate the 118 episodes of the thriller series filmed 1962-69.

At the time Sir Roger said: “When I was last here in the studios I had a lot more hair, and I had 20:20 vision and a 32 inch waist.

“Life has caught up with me. I had the best time here at Elstree.

“I'm grateful for this plaque. It is going to be moved to Borehamwood High Street, which was used all the time in The Saint.

“It was meant to be the Champs Elysees, but all they did was flip the film - they forgot about the London buses.

“I just want to be assured that it will be high enough that dogs can't reach it, because the critics have been doing it to me for years."

The celebrated actor also made the films Crossplot and The Man Who Haunted Himself in Elstree.

Producer of The Saint Robert Baker said: “Roger accepted the role of Simon Templar and the rest is history.

“That it became a great success was largely down to him.

“In all my experience, I've never worked with a more professional, hardworking, more sincere actor. He also regularly played practical jokes on set, and praised him for his recent work with Unicef, the United Nations children's charity.”

Former production secretary of Elstree Studios Gaye Shepherd said: “He was just like family. He wasn’t this great big movie star, he was just a lovely ordinary person.

“He was always approachable, and would pop his head in to our office to say ‘good morning girls’ as he came in for filming.

“He got to where he was because he was so handsome, and just such a lovely guy.”