Minghella won an Oscar for directing The English Patient

Minghella, whose films include Truly, Madly, Deeply and Cold Mountain, was chairman of the British Film Institute.

In 1996, he won an Oscar for directing The English Patient and was also Oscar-nominated for writing the screenplay for 1999's The Talented Mr Ripley.

He has also directed a TV episode of book The No. 1 Ladies' Detective Agency, due to be screened this Easter.

A 90-minute pilot, directed by Minghella and co-written with Richard Curtis, is due to be screened on BBC One.

Minghella began his career as a writer with his early radio plays winning several awards.

He made his first film, Truly, Madly, Deeply, in 1991, followed by The English Patient and The Talented Mr Ripley.

When he took on the role of chairman of the British Film Institute (BFI) in 2003, he told the BBC: "We're not getting enough movies made here, our studios aren't busy enough, we don't have enough studios.

"We're not good at lassoing the talent we have here and containing it within the British Isles, and we should all be working to address that."