Smith travelled to Norway with his wife Elisabeth in order to join her relatives for Christmas. On 19 January 2006, the couple started the journey back to Zimbabwe via London. Whilst in the transit lounge at Heathrow Airport, Smith suddenly suffered a heart attack and died almost instantly. He had previously been in good health. His body was later returned to Norway for cremation whilst a memorial service was held at the Anglican cathedral in Harare. The family assigned the Smiths' eldest daughter, Inger, to break the news to his father. The latter had suffered a fall the previous year and had been obliged to live with his widowed stepdaughter, Jean Tholet, in Cape Town. Ian Smith was reported to have been devastated by the news and not to have recovered from it either mentally or physically. Alec Smith was described by someone who knew him later in his life as follows: "... a pale, slow-walking, slow-talking man with watery eyes and a gentle sense of humour. There was nothing overtly animated about him. He was a will- o'-the-wisp: you never knew quite where he'd come from or where he was going." Rebecca de Saintonge, The Independent, 2 February 2006 References 1949 births 2006 deaths Zimbabwean people of British descent White Rhodesian people People from Gweru Rhodesian military personnel Rhodes University alumni Alumni of Chaplin High School Ian Smith