Date: 19th March 2008

Arthur C Clarke dies at 90


British science fiction writer Sir Arthur C Clarke has died in Sri Lanka at the age of 90.

The Somerset-born author came to fame in 1968 when short story The Sentinel was made into the film 2001: A Space Odyssey by director Stanley Kubrick.

Sir Arthur's vision of future space travel and computing captured the popular imagination.

Sri Lankan President Mahinda Rajapakse paid tribute, hailing the writer as a "great visionary".

Source: Press Release