{"id":1818,"date":"2025-10-07T17:52:35","date_gmt":"2025-10-07T17:52:35","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/everyonesdiary.com\/?p=1818"},"modified":"2025-10-07T17:52:35","modified_gmt":"2025-10-07T17:52:35","slug":"phantom-of-the-opera-star-ben-lewis-dies-at-46","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/everyonesdiary.com\/?p=1818","title":{"rendered":"Phantom of the Opera star Ben Lewis dies at 46"},"content":{"rendered":"<p data-start=\"103\" data-end=\"161\"><strong data-start=\"103\" data-end=\"161\">West End Star Ben Lewis Dies at 46 After Cancer Battle<\/strong><\/p>\n<p data-start=\"163\" data-end=\"359\">Ben Lewis, the acclaimed Australian stage actor best known for his role as the Phantom in <em data-start=\"253\" data-end=\"279\">The Phantom of the Opera<\/em> and <em data-start=\"284\" data-end=\"301\">Love Never Dies<\/em>, has died at age 46 following a battle with bowel cancer.<\/p>\n<p data-start=\"361\" data-end=\"620\">The news was shared on October 6, 2025, by his friend and TV host Todd Woodbridge, who called Lewis \u201cone of the greats.\u201d \u201cBen was a star on stage\u2026 but more importantly, he was one of the great humans \u2014 funny, caring, and a wonderful mentor,\u201d Woodbridge wrote.<\/p>\n<p data-start=\"622\" data-end=\"827\">Diagnosed with incurable bowel cancer in February 2024, Lewis underwent major surgery and aggressive chemotherapy. But by April, the cancer had spread to his liver, lungs, and pelvis, becoming untreatable.<\/p>\n<p data-start=\"829\" data-end=\"1310\">Born in London into a family of classically trained opera singers, Lewis studied at the Royal College of Music and the Western Australian Academy of Performing Arts. His early career featured standout roles in <em data-start=\"1039\" data-end=\"1050\">Urinetown<\/em>, <em data-start=\"1052\" data-end=\"1074\">A Little Night Music<\/em>, and <em data-start=\"1080\" data-end=\"1112\">Priscilla, Queen of the Desert<\/em>. In 2011, he originated the role of the Phantom in <em data-start=\"1164\" data-end=\"1181\">Love Never Dies<\/em> in Australia, earning the Judith Johnson Award for Best Actor. He later reprised the role in London\u2019s West End in 2017 and 2018.<\/p>\n<p data-start=\"1312\" data-end=\"1570\">Adding to the heartbreak, Ben had been the primary caregiver for his wife, actress Melle Stewart, after she suffered a life-altering stroke in 2021 linked to the AstraZeneca COVID-19 vaccine. He remained steadfastly by her side throughout her rehabilitation.<\/p>\n<p data-start=\"1572\" data-end=\"1759\">Ben Lewis is survived by his wife and extended family. His powerful voice, generous spirit, and unforgettable performances leave a lasting legacy on stages and in hearts across the world.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>West End Star Ben Lewis Dies at 46 After Cancer Battle Ben Lewis, the acclaimed Australian stage actor best known for his role as the Phantom in&#8230; <\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":1819,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-1818","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-uncategorized"],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v25.9 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/wordpress\/plugins\/seo\/ -->\n<title>Phantom of the Opera star Ben Lewis dies at 46 - EVERYONESDIARY<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/everyonesdiary.com\/?p=1818\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Phantom of the Opera star Ben Lewis dies at 46 - 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