Sir Anthony Hopkins has celebrated his Best Actor Oscar win in Wales.

At 83-years-old Sir Anthony became the oldest person to win an acting award which he won for his role in The Father, in which he plays an ageing man struggling with memory loss.

Posting on his Instagram page the Welshman, who has been travelling around Wales over the past month, said: "Good morning. Here I am in my home land of Wales. At 83 years of age I did not expect to get this award, I really didn't.

"I am very grateful to the Academy, and I want to say thank you. I want to pay tribute to Chadwick Boseman who was taken from us far too early. And once again, thank you all. I really did not expect this. I feel very privileged and honoured. Thank you."

His success comes after a six-decade career in which he has worked alongside greats such as Laurence Olivier, later Lord Olivier, and won praise for complex characters such as the terrifying Hannibal Lecter and the enigmatic Dr Robert Ford in Westworld.

Sir Anthony Hopkins was born in Margam, the son of Muriel Anne and Richard Arthur Hopkins, a baker in 1937. He often said he was inspired to become an actor after once meeting acting legend Richard Burton in Port Talbot when he was a 15-year-old.

Sir Anthony went on to have a glittering career, receiving numerous awards including Oscars, Baftas and Emmys and in 1993 he was knighted for services to the arts. The actor, who lives in Malibu, also received a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame in 2003 and the Bafta Fellowship of Lifetime Achievement in 2008.

An Instagram post by Sir Anthony Hopkins after he was named as best actor at the 2021 Oscars for his role as a man slipping into dementia in The Father.

An Instagram post by Sir Anthony Hopkins after he was named as best actor at the 2021 Oscars for his role as a man slipping into dementia in The Father.

Neath Port Talbot Council has added to the many congratulations heaped on Sir Anthony Hopkins who won The Best Actor award at the 2021 Oscars ceremony.

The 83-year-old became the oldest ever actor to get the coveted award for his widely praised performance as a man suffering with dementia in The Father, 29 years after he won his first Oscar for The Silence of the Lambs.

Following his first Oscar win he was made a Freeman of his home town of Port Talbot.

Neath Port Talbot Council’s Chief Executive, Karen Jones, said: “Congratulations to Sir Anthony for his continued success and it’s likely the sensitive subject of this movie will help us all understand more about the difficulties posed by dementia to the sufferer and to family members.”