Alan Rickman used to surprise pals by using his fortune to pay for their meals

‘No one even got a look at the check’: Alan Rickman used to surprise pals by using his Harry Potter fortune to pay for their meals… as fans pay tribute five years after his death

Alan Rickman used to spend his fortune by paying for his friend’s meals without their knowledge, his co-star Kate Winslet revealed.

The story resurfaced on Thursday as fans marked the fifth anniversary of the actor’s death in 2016 following a battle with pancreatic cancer.

Kate revealed he’d secretly pay for dinners with close friends without their knowledge, and if they protested would simply reference his vast fortune from the Harry Potter series. 

Generous: Alan Rickman spent his fortune by paying for his friend’s meals without their knowledge as fans paid tribute to the actor on the fifth anniversary of his death (pictured 2015)

Kate paid tribute to Alan in a piece she penned for Entertainment Weekly in 2017, revealing she truly became aware of his generosity after learning he’d secretly pay for his friend’s dinners by slipping the waiters his credit card.

The Titanic star starred alongside Alan in 1995’s Sense and Sensibility when she was just 19 years old. 

Kate revealed: ‘He was always a great big softy. If there was one word I could use to really describe Al, it would be kind. He was so kind. 

‘At Al’s memorial, Juliet Stevenson told the story of how whenever Al would go out to supper and anyone else would try and pay, he would somehow have phoned ahead or slipped his credit card ahead of the meal so no one even got a look at the check.’

Sweet: His former co-star Kate Winslet recalled the late actor's generosity in a 2017 piece she penned for Entertainment Weekly, and it resurfaced on the fifth anniversary of his death

Sweet: His former co-star Kate Winslet recalled the late actor’s generosity in a 2017 piece she penned for Entertainment Weekly, and it resurfaced on the fifth anniversary of his death

‘He’d just say, ”I’ve got two words for you: Harry Potter.” And he became known for doing that.’

Alan was best known for playing ‘baddies’ such as Severus Snape in the Harry Potter series and Hans Gruber in Die Hard.

But the actor left £4 million in his will including legacies of £100,000 to two charities.

Alan left the bulk of his UK assets to his wife Rima Horton, 68, who lived with him in west London. 

But he also left £25,000 each to the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art, Sponsored Arts for Education, the Facial Surgery Research Foundation known as Saving Faces and the International Performers Aid Trust.

Sweet: The Titanic star (pictured with Emma Thompson) appeared alongside Alan in Sense and Sensibility when she was just 19

Sweet: The Titanic star (pictured with Emma Thompson) appeared alongside Alan in Sense and Sensibility when she was just 19

Iconic: Alan was one of the best-loved British actors, and will forever be immortalised in the Wizarding World of Harry Potter as the eponymous character's Potions Master Severus Snape

Iconic: Alan was one of the best-loved British actors, and will forever be immortalised in the Wizarding World of Harry Potter as the eponymous character’s Potions Master Severus Snape

You're still missed: Many fans took to social media to mark the fifth anniversary of Alan's death on Thursday

You’re still missed: Many fans took to social media to mark the fifth anniversary of Alan’s death on Thursday

Rickman, a lifelong Labour supporter, was widely involved in the latter two charities in his lifetime. He also left £25,000 each to his three nieces.

Many fans took to social media to mark the fifth anniversary of his death, with some sharing snaps of their most beloved Harry Potter featuring his character Severus Snape.

Alan shot to fame as Bruce Willis’s adversary German terrorist Hans Gruber in 1988 film Die Hard and for his BAFTA winning role as a villainous Sheriff of Nottingham in Robin Hood: Prince of Thieves in 1991. 

He also won a Golden Globe and an Emmy for his terrifying title role in the 1995 film Rasputin and was BAFTA-nominated for his parts in Michael Collins, Sense and Sensibility and Truly Madly Deeply. 

Legend: Kate joked that he was the polar opposite of his Harry Potter 'baddie' character Severus Snape

Legend: Kate joked that he was the polar opposite of his Harry Potter ‘baddie’ character Severus Snape