British scientist Stephen Hawking | Niklas Halle'n/AFP via Getty Images Stephen Hawking: Labour’s Jeremy Corbyn is ‘a disaster’ The physicist said Corbyn’s policies were sound, but that he should step aside for ‘sake of the party.’

Celebrated British physicist Stephen Hawking called Jeremy Corbyn "a disaster," saying the Labour leader "should step down" for the sake of the party.

Corbyn's "heart is in the right place" and many of his policies are sound, but he has "allowed himself to be portrayed as a left-wing extremist," the author of "The Brief History of Time" said in an interview with the Times published Tuesday.

The scientist, who just celebrated his 75th birthday, said he would have supported Corbyn in the next elections but that doing so would be futile.

"I think he should step down for the sake of the party,” Hawking said.