<P> The truth about Dumbledore's death is revealed through Snape's last memories in the Pensieve . Harry learns that Dumbledore made a terrible error by placing a cursed ring on his right hand, sometime between the fifth and sixth book, forgetting the curses that must be on the ring . The ring held the Resurrection Stone, which Dumbledore hoped to use to allow him to apologise to his sister and parents . Dumbledore called Snape to help him; however, when Snape arrived and assessed the curse, all he could do was contain it . Snape told Dumbledore that he had little more than a year to live . After hearing this news, Dumbledore revealed to Snape that he knew about Voldemort's plan to have Draco kill him . He asked Snape to use the Killing Curse on him when the time came because he did not want Draco to have to kill him, saying that the boy's soul was still intact; Draco's soul would have been damaged in killing Dumbledore out of malice, whereas Snape was fully aware that he would be merely sparing Dumbledore pain and humiliation . He also intended for Snape to be the one to kill him and for the Elder Wand to be buried with him, in order to prevent the wand from being passed on again . </P> <P> Dumbledore's spirit appears to Harry towards the end of the book in a limbo - like King's Cross, after Harry is struck with the Killing Curse which was conjured by Voldemort . During the last book, Harry finds out that he must die because he is a Horcrux . When Voldemort conjures the Killing Curse, Harry does not fight back, which stops him from dying . When they meet again, the boy comforts Dumbledore as he confesses all of his many regrets . Dumbledore then informs Harry of the choice he still has: of moving on to the next life or returning to his body to face Voldemort one last time . After returning from the mystical King's Cross and defeating Voldemort for good, Harry has a short conversation with Dumbledore's portrait in the Headmaster's office about the fate of each of the three Deathly Hallows . He keeps the Cloak, leaves the Stone in the Forbidden Forest where he dropped it, and returns the Elder Wand to Dumbledore's tomb (from which Voldemort had stolen it). In the epilogue, it is revealed that Harry names his second son Albus Severus Potter after Dumbledore and Snape . </P> <P> In the film adaptations of Philosopher's Stone (2001) and Chamber of Secrets (2002), Dumbledore was played by Richard Harris, who was expected to play Dumbledore throughout the series . Harris mentioned that he was originally not going to take the role, since he knew his own health was in decline . He accepted because his then - 11 - year - old granddaughter threatened never to speak to him again if he did not take it . Harris was determined to portray Dumbledore again in Prisoner of Azkaban (which was released in 2004), despite having been diagnosed with Hodgkin's lymphoma, and asked David Heyman not to recast the role . However, his death on 25 October 2002 necessitated recasting . </P> <P> Ian McKellen was offered the role, but he turned it down, having played the similar character Gandalf in The Lord of the Rings trilogy, as well as feeling it would have been inappropriate to take Harris's role, as Harris had called McKellen a "dreadful" actor . Harris's family had expressed an interest in seeing Peter O'Toole being chosen as his replacement . </P>

When did the actor who played dumbledore die