Shortland Street actor Francis Mossman dies aged 33

Mossman died over the weekend (Picture:@francismossman/Instagram)

Actor Francis Mossman – known for his role in Shortland Street – has died aged 33.

The actor, who hailed from New Zealand but was based in Sydney, also appeared in Spartacus as well as LGBT+ web series The Horizon.

According to reports, Mossman was found dead on Saturday, after a battle with his mental health.

Mossman was known for his role as Taylor in Auckland soap Shortland Street, joining in 2006 before moving to Sydney and starring as Stevie Hughes in The Horizon, which became the most-watched LGBT+ web series in the world.

The actor’s co-star Paul Layton claimed his friend had been struggling during the Covid lockdown and with the uncertainty around work.

On August 4, Mossman posted a photo to Instagram alongside a dog as he wrote: ‘Pup isn’t loving lockdown….’, while at the end of July he posted a straight-faced selfie and wrote: ‘Me being excited for at least 4 more weeks of lockdown.’

He was known for his roles in Shortland Street and The Horizon (Picture: Francis Mossman/Instagram)

Tributes have come in for the actor (Picture: Frankie Mossman/Instagram)

Layton told Daily Mail: ‘There seems to be an epidemic of losing people in isolation these days that nobody seems to be talking about.

‘The unfortunate thing about Franny, I think, was his good looks. They were the least interesting thing about him because he was so funny and weird and I loved it. He was such a beautiful person in every sense of the word.’

Layton had earlier paid tribute to Mossman on social media, writing alongside a series of images on Facebook: ‘Oh, my boy, my sweetest of friends. It makes my heart hurt so much to hear you passed away. This world doesn’t seem as bright without you in it.

‘I wish I was there for you more. We would always see each other on the street, all the time, just bump into each other and my life was always better because of it. Sometimes it felt like we found each other in the dark of all this.

‘I think I’ll look for you in crowds for the rest of my life, old friend. If there’s an afterlife, I hope it’s filled with tables so I can throw you on them and have my way with you for all of time! Sending my love to your family and friends and if anyone needs to reach out, please don’t hesitate, please talk to someone, anyone.

‘If you’re reading this, I love you, and hope you’re doing OK. Love.’

Tributes came in, as Courtney Act posted a message in the comments on a final image on Mossman’s Instagram, which was of him as a young boy.

She wrote: ‘Oh gosh. Sweet Frankie. I’m so sorry to hear this news.’

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Radio presenter Cam Mansel added: ‘Rest in peace my sweet friend I’m sorry that things got this hard for you. To anybody reading this it is always ok to ask for help. Please reach out to someone you trust.’