THE actor who played the cigar-chewing Sergeant Apone in the 1986 cult film Aliens has been found dead in his villa in the Orihuela Costa area (southern Alicante province).
Alexander Basil Matthews – better known as Al Matthews – was found with no pulse and not breathing at around 22.00 on Saturday.
The local resident who discovered him unconscious on his bed called for help, but it was already too late.
Matthews, 75, the first-ever black DJ on BBC Radio One during his years working in the UK, had lived on the Orihuela Costa – an area very popular with expats and holiday-home owners - since 2005.
He is said to have suffered several serious health conditions, the combination of which may have caused his death, but the nature of which have not yet been revealed.
Police at the scene said there were no external signs of violence, and they have ruled out foul play.
Although most famous for his role in Aliens and, in 2013, providing the voice for his character on the video game version, Aliens: Colonial Marines, the African-American is also known for sizeable parts in the 1980s' productions Rough Cut, Omen III: The Final Conflict, The Sender, Superman III and The American Way.
Born in Brooklyn, New York, Matthews spent much of the 1990s in the UK, where he was a presenter and actor on BBC Radio One, Radio Four and Capital Radio, and played Benny Green's father in the gritty school serial Grange Hill.
His later films include Tomorrow Never Dies and The Fifth Element in 1997.
An accomplished singer, Matthews reached number16 in the UK singles chart with his record Fool.
A Vietnam war veteran with 13 awards and medals from his service in the US Marine Corps, including two purple hearts, Matthews was the first black Marine to be promoted to Sergeant based upon merit.
