DAME Barbara Windsor, best known for her roles in EastEnders and the iconic Carry On films, has died aged 83.
The much-loved star - affectionally known as "Babs" - found fame playing a buxom blonde in the bawdy comedies and later became a TV favourite as Peggy Mitchell in the hit BBC soap.
Dame Barbara was diagnosed with Alzheimer's disease in 2014 and made the news public in 2018.
The 4ft 10in star died "peacefully" at 8.35pm on Thursday night at a London care home with her husband Scott Mitchell by her side.
In a moving tribute, he called her his "precious Bar" and said: "I've lost my wife, my best friend and soul mate."
He said the cherished actress's final weeks were "typical of how she lived her life" and "full of humour, drama and a fighting spirit until the end".
Mr Mitchell told PA: "Her passing was from Alzheimer's/dementia and Barbara eventually died peacefully and I spent the last seven days by her side.
"Myself, her family and friends will remember Barbara with love, a smile and affection for the many years of her love, fun, friendship and brightness she brought to all our lives and the entertainment she gave to so many thousands of others during her career.
"Barbara's final weeks were typical of how she lived her life. Full of humour, drama and a fighting spirit until the end.
"It was not the ending that Barbara or anyone else living with this very cruel disease deserve.
"I will always be immensely proud of Barbara's courage, dignity and generosity dealing with her own illness and still trying to help others by raising awareness for as long as she could."
Mr Mitchell, who alongside his wife campaigned for greater dementia care from the Government, added: "Dementia/Alzheimer's remains the UK's number one killer.
"Although in challenging times, I urge the Prime Minister, his government and other parties to be true to their previous promises and invest more into dementia/Alzheimer's research and care.
"Thank you to all the doctors, nurses and carers who are angels at the care home for your kindness and care to Barbara and I throughout her stay with you. You are my heroes.
"And my gratitude to our family, friends and everyone in the media and the general public for all the good wishes and warm support that has been shown to Barbara over the last few years during her illness. Barbara deeply appreciated that."
At the end of his moving tribute, Mr Mitchell said: "May you rest in peace now my precious Bar. I've lost my wife, my best friend and soul mate and my heart or life will never feel the same without you."
The actress was born as Barbara Deeks to a market stall trader father and dressmaker mother in Shoreditch, London in 1937.
Her career started on stage aged 13 before moving to films four years later.
Dame Barbara took the stage name Windsor in 1953 after she was inspired by the Queen's coronation.
She found fame in the Carry On films where she played good-time girl characters in nine of the bawdy comedies.
In Carry On Camping, Barbara was voted the nation's favourite and the iconic scene where her bikini top fell off during an exercise class was a defining moment in her career.
The actress was married three times and in her Swining Sixties heydey she hung around infamous East End gangsters Ronnie and Reggie Kay - and married their associate Ronnie Knight.
Dame Barbara made her debut as Peggy in EastEnders in 1994 and soon became one of the small screen's best-loved characters as she yelled at rogue drinkers to "get outta my pub!".
Her Albert Square co-stars have paid tribute to the their beloved Peggy.
Steve McFaddon, who played her on-screen son Phil Mitchell, said the news has left him "devastated".
Adam Woodyatt, who plays Ian Beale, shared a photo of him with Dame Barbara said: "I grew up watching Babs in the Carrie On films and for me then to work with her it was a privilege and honour. I have so many happy memories and moments that I will always cherish, even when Peggy floored Ian with a punch."
Patsy Palmer, who played Bianca Jackson, said: "We were like family for a long time, ups downs, ins and outs, but you will never meet a more professional actress than Babs... I can hear that laugh now as I sit and think about her. I hope it'll ring in my ears forever."
Danniella Westbrook, 47, who played Peggy’s daughter Sam, wrote on Twitter: “Today we lost a legend a national treasure and a woman who I looked up to for most of my life.
“A generous, warm, funny humble and beautiful lady and someone who gave us all much joy watching her act.
“A woman who I was lucky enough to work with for many years as my mum and a loyal friend. The brightest of all stars will now shine above us instead of among us.”
Former EastEnders actor Ricky Norwood tweeted: "Such sad news to wake up to. I was lucky enough to work with her on @bbceastenders .. full of energy, Big smile, so warm and welcoming.
He added: "Thank you x It meant a lot. Loved that you always had time for young actors and fans. Legend. We miss you already."
Dame Barbara's EastEnders co-star Lucy Benjamin posted on Instagram: "What a sad sad day. Rip my darlin Babs. You were a true star in every sense."
Shane Richie has paid tribute to his former EastEnders co-star Dame Barbara Windsor.
"I'm absolutely devastated as Barbara was a friend as well as my TV Boss in the Queen Vic.
"We shared many a story in between filming - to amazement of situations (we found ourselves in) to laughter!," he said in a statement.
Playing Peggy became the defining role of her career and saw her star alongside Ross Kemp and Steve McFadden as her fictional sons Grant and Phil, with the late Mike Reid as her on-screen husband Frank Butcher.
The character left our screens in 2003 when Dame Barbara took a sabbatical for medical reasons after being diagnosed with the Epstein-Barr virus, but she returned as a series regular in 2005.
In 2009, Dame Barbara announced she would be leaving the soap again in order to spend more time with her husband Scott, who she married in 2000.
She returned for cameo appearances in the soap over the next few years but in 2016 she played Peggy for the final time.
Her final scenes aired in May that year as the Walford stalwart took her own life after being diagnosed with terminal cancer.
Prime Minister Boris Johnson tweeted: "So sad about Barbara Windsor, so much more than a great pub landlady & Carry On star.
"She campaigned for the lonely and the vulnerable - and cheered the world up with her own British brand of harmless sauciness & innocent scandal. Thoughts with Scott and all her family & friends."
Comedian David Baddiel paid tribute on Twitter, saying: "RIP the very lovely, very funny Barbara Windsor. What a genuine national treasure she was."
TV presenter Jonathan Ross tweeted: "Barbara Windsor in real life was everything you might have hoped for. So warm, so funny, so kind. Goodnight sweetheart x #BarbaraWindsor".
Actor Sheridan Smith tweeted: "Such devastating news about Dame Barbra Windsor. She was one of my idols and I had the pleasure of meeting her through her dear friend @davidwalliams and she could not have been nicer.
"What a career and what a woman. Our national treasure. Rest in peace."
Director Edgar Wright tweeted: "Farewell to a true national treasure, Dame Barbara Windsor. Why I loved the Carry On movies as a kid (and still do) was for her infectious smile & utterly inimitable laugh.
"I met her briefly once and was starstruck into silence, as if meeting the Queen. In a way I was. RIP Babs."
TV host Piers Morgan tweeted: "What bloody sad news to wake up to... Barbara Windsor was the funniest, warmest, naughtiest, kindest & most big-hearted of people.
"She was also a fabulous actress with the world's most infectious giggle. Absolutely loved her. RIP Babs, and thanks for all the laughs."
And His Good Morning Britain co-host Susanna Reid tweeted: "What sad news about Dame Barbara Windsor. She always had that twinkling smile when you met her, she was kind and good-humoured. She was gorgeous. She will be missed. Love to Scott."
Phillip Schofield tweeted: "Farewell to gorgeous Barbara Windsor a real icon, showbiz lost a lot of sparkle today sending love to Scott and all her family."
Before becoming synonymous with Albert Square, Dame Barbara delighted Carry On fans with her portrayals of a "good time girl," appearing in nine films in a series known for its bawdy humour.
The actress was made a dame in the 2016 New Year's Honours list for her services to charity and entertainment.
Both Dame Barbara and her husband campaigned to raise awareness of Alzheimer's following her diagnosis.
In August this year Mitchell revealed his wife had been moved to a care home in the capital.
Dame Barbara was born Barbara Anne Deeks in Shoreditch, in 1937 to a fruit and veg cart seller and a dressmaker.
As a child she was bright and sat her 11-plus exam a year early and proudly boasted she got the "highest mark in North London."
She trained at the Aida Foster School in Golders Green before making her stage debut in a pantomine at the age of 13.
In 1953, inspired by the Queen's Coronation, she adopted the stage-name Windsor.
She later received a BAFTA Award nomination for Sparrows Can't Sing in 1963 and a Tony award nomination for 1964's Oh, What A Lovely War!.
She first appeared in Carry On Spying in 1964, with her final film role coming in 1974's Carry On Dick.
One of Dame Barbara's most famous scenes was in 1969's Carry On Camping, when her bikini top flew off in the middle of an exercise class.
She married her first husband Ronnie Knight in 1964 - who was a close friend of the notorious Kray Twins.
Ronnie fled to Costa del Sol in 1984 amid links to a £6m robbery and Barbara divorced him in 1986.
She then married chef Stephen Hollings in Jamaica.
Together the bought the Plough Inn in Amersham, Bucks. but the venture and their marriage collapsed when they divorced in 1995.
She married Scott in 2000 – they met when she was 55 and him 28 – and she had admitted herself people didn't expect it to last.
Babs never had children and spoke openly about having had five abortions, but in 2017 she said that she did not regret not becoming a mother.
https://news.google.com/__i/rss/rd/articles/CBMiV2h0dHBzOi8vd3d3LnRoZXN1bi5jby51ay9uZXdzLzEzNDQ0NzEwL2JhcmJhcmEtd2luZHNvci1kZWFkLWVhc3RlbmRlcnMtY2Fycnktb24tbGVnZW5kL9IBVGh0dHBzOi8vd3d3LnRoZXN1bi5jby51ay9uZXdzLzEzNDQ0NzEwL2JhcmJhcmEtd2luZHNvci1kZWFkLWVhc3RlbmRlcnMtZGVtZW50aWEvYW1wLw?oc=5
2020-12-11 07:32:00Z
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