Robin Sachs, the British actor best known for playing the villainous Ethan Rayne in Buffy The Vampire Slayer, has died at the age of 61.

The London-born star also played the evil General Sarris in Galaxy Guest, reports BBC News. His ex-wife Casey Defranco called him "a wonderful person, extraordinarily talented as an actor."

Staff on Sachs' official website posted a heartfelt message this week. "Please join us in raising a glass to Robin - goodbye, dear friend. Thank you for all the laughter and the cookies. We will miss you so very much," it read. The actor's first film role was with the legendary British Hammer film studio, in the film Vampire Circus. He went on to play Adam Carrington in the 1991 series Dynasty: The Reunion and made appearances in such sci-fi shows as Babylon 5, Star Trek: Voyager and Torchwood: Miracle Day. Sachs was also a respected theatre actor and starred in touring productions of Hamlet and Twelfth Night. His wide-spanning career also included providing voices for several video games including Mass Effect 2 and 3 and Resident Evil Damnation. 

However, Sachs will always be best remembered for playing Ethan Rayne in Buffy (also starring Sarah Michelle Gellar) - the seemingly benevolent owner of a costume shop who actually worshipped chaos and made deals with demons, vampires and humans. Upon hearing the sad news, Armin Shimerman, who played Quark in Star Trek: Deep Space Nine, tweeted, "It is with great pain & shock, Kitty & I mourn the loss of our friend Robin Sachs. All who knew him, knew how special Robin was."