MIRFIELD-BORN film star Patrick Stewart is recovering in Los Angeles after an operation to widen an artery.

The operation, called an angioplasty, involves the use of a tube to put a small, inflatable balloon in a narrowed blood vessel.

When the balloon is inflated, the blood in the artery flows more freely.

Stewart, 64, who played Prof Charles Xavier in the X-Men film and its sequel and Capt Jean-Luc Picard in Star Trek: The Next Generation, went for an annual check-up on Monday, said his publicist, Kelly Bush.

Doctors found a blood- flow problem and recommended "pre-emptive angioplasty" to head off any future ailments.

The operation was a success and Stewart is resting before returning to work next week.

He is planning to finish a film, The Game Of Their Lives.

He also will start voiceover work on an animated TV series, American Dad.

But he is missing a planned appearance in Toronto today, where he was due to visit a sci-fi festival.