Williams was best known for his work on the cartoon bunny in the 1988 classic Who Framed Roger Rabbit, which won two Oscars for its blend of animations and live action.

He also animated the title sequences for the 1970s comedy classics The Return Of The Pink Panther and The Pink Panther Strikes Again, and worked on Casino Royale.

Williams had cancer but was "still animating and writing until the day he died", his daughter Natasha Sutton Williams said.

Ms Sutton Williams said her father "really wanted to learn about the world".

She recounted that when Williams was 15 he made a trip to Disney and waited at the gates to meet all the lead animators who later taught him and became his friends.

Williams told the BBC in 2008: "I always wanted, when I was a kid, to get to Disney. I was a clever little fellow so I took my drawings and I eventually got in.

Sky News