List of Famous people who died at 86

Jan Karski was a Polish soldier, resistance-fighter, and diplomat during World War II. He is known for having acted as a courier in 1940–43 to the Polish Government-in-Exile and to Poland's Western Allies about the situation in German-occupied Poland. He was reporting about the state of Poland, in which there were many competing factions in the resistance, and also about Germany's destruction of the Warsaw Ghetto and its operation of extermination camps on Polish soil that were murdering Jews, Poles, and others.

Bryan Walter Guinness, 2nd Baron Moyne was an heir to part of the Guinness family brewing fortune, and a lawyer, poet and novelist. He was briefly married to Diana Mitford.

Glenn Robertson Yarbrough was an American folk singer and guitarist. He was the lead singer (tenor) with the Limeliters from 1959 to 1963. He also had a prolific solo career, recording on various labels.

Eric Wright was a professor of English and Canadian writer of mystery novels.

Quentin Claudian Stephen Bell was an English art historian and author.

Father Matta El Meskeen or Matthew the Poor, born Youssef Iskandar was a Copt Coptic Orthodox monk. He was the key figure in the revival of Coptic monasticism which began in 1969 when he was appointed to the Monastery of St Macarius in the Wadi El Natrun in Egypt. By the time of his death the community had grown from 6 aged monks to 130 monks, and as many other monasteries were revived, new ones also began to open. He was twice nominated to become Coptic Pope, but was not chosen in either case.

Richard F. MacPherson was an American football coach. He served as the head coach at the University of Massachusetts Amherst from 1971 to 1977 and at Syracuse University from 1981 to 1990, compiling a career college football record of 111–73–5. MacPherson was the head coach of the National Football League's New England Patriots from 1991 to 1992, tallying a mark of 8–24. He was inducted into the College Football Hall of Fame as a coach in 2009.

Ivan Passer was a Czech film director and screenwriter, best known for his involvement in the Czechoslovak New Wave and for directing American films such as Born to Win (1971), Cutter's Way (1981) and Stalin (1992).

María Josefa Wonenburger Planells was a Galician mathematician who did research in the United States and Canada. She is known for her work on group theory. She was the first Spaniard to obtain a Fulbright scholarship for doctoral studies in mathematics.

Antonina Alexandrovna Seredina was a Russian sprint canoeist. She won the 500 m singles and doubles events at the 1960 Olympics, and placed third in the doubles in 1968 and fourth in 1964. She also won five medals at the ICF Canoe Sprint World Championships with two golds and three silvers.