Lord Richard Attenborough is in hospital after a fall at his home.

The Oscar-winner and Freeman of Leicester was in a stable condition yesterday, said a spokesman for St George's Hospital in Tooting, south west London.

The 85-year-old actor and director was forced to pull out of a plaque-unveiling ceremony after the accident.

Lord Attenborough had been due to honour Brief Encounter star Dame Celia Johnson on Thursday, the centenary of her birth.

Lord Attenborough and his younger brother, television wildlife presenter Sir David, grew up in Leicester.

Their father, Frederick, was the principal of University College Leicester between 1932 and 1951.

Lord Attenborough now lives in Richmond upon Thames.