Beloved Greek actor Kostas Evripiotis passes away aged 56

Popular Greek actor Kostas Evripiotis sadly lost his battle with cancer on Thursday, aged 56. Evripiotis was in palliative care at Spiliopoulio Hospital, where he was fighting for his life, with his partner Lilian Botsi, his sister and his two children Adamantios and Ion from his previous his marriage to Valia Kostopoulou all by his side.

The news of his death was posted on Facebook, where thousands of his fans have posted messages of sadness following his passing

Kostas Evripiotis' health battles began a year ago, while he was preparing for a performance on stage at the Athena Theatre, for the play "Handyman and Deputy." Evripiotis began noticing he was forgetting his words and had intense headaches.

Kostas was born in Athens in 1963 and was the youngest of his four siblings. He starred in many Greek television shows, movies, and plays and gained a huge following nationwide from fans who adored him.

His last photograph was taken at the hospital ward where he celebrated his birthday last March with his two sons and wife by his side.

In an earlier interview, Kostas had said about his state of health, "I have come closer to God. I believe in him even more. Now I put the man Kostas first and then all the rest. I always believed there was a God. But after my health issue, I believe even more. You cannot believe that there is no God when you are one step ahead of death. "