Sean Connery’s widow describes dementia battle, last moments of a ‘model of a man’

Legendary actor Sean Connery “went peacefully” after a long battle with dementia, his widow said in an exclusive interview.

Micheline Roquebrune, Connery’s wife of 45 years, said the disease had sapped the Oscar-winning actor of his vigor and said he got his final wish to pass away peacefully, the Daily Mail reported Saturday.

“It was no life for him,” Roquebrune, 91, told the outlet.

“He was not able to express himself . . . At least he died in his sleep and it was just so peaceful. I was with him all the time and he just slipped away. It was what he wanted,” she said.

“He had dementia and it took its toll on him,” she added. “He got his final wish to slip away without any fuss.”

Roquebrune, a French-Moroccan painter, met Connery at a golf tournament, and the two married in 1975.

“He was gorgeous and we had a wonderful life together,” she said. “He was a model of a man. It is going to be very hard without him, I know that. But it could not last forever and he went peacefully.”

Connery, 90, who was knighted by Queen Elizabeth in 2000, died at his home in the Bahamas, the family said Saturday.

The Scottish-born actor was best known for his portrayal of James Bond, the fictional British secret agent created by author Ian Fleming.

Connery played Bond, or Agent 007, in seven films beginning with 1962’s “Dr. No.”

A former member of the Royal Navy, Connery spent years working odd jobs, including as a nude model, until making his way to acting and ultimately becoming one of the industry’s biggest stars.

However, in recent years, Connery told his agents to turn down all acting jobs and retreated into his home in New Providence in the Bahamas with his wife — despite being offered “wheelbarrows full of cash” to make a cameo appearance in a number of films, the Daily Mail said.

Roquebrune told the outlet that her husband will be cremated and a memorial service will be held at a later date. It remains unclear whether the actor’s ashes will be returned to Scotland.

“We have not decided what to do,” the widow said. “That is something we will talk about soon but he will be cremated in the Bahamas, which is what he wanted.”