Dame June Whitfield dies aged 93

[dutchman]

Dame June Whitfield - celebrated for her comic roles in BBC sitcom Terry and June and cult favourite Absolutely Fabulous - has died aged 93



The London-born actress was a regular fixture on TV and radio for six decades, starring in Carry On films, Hancock's Half Hour, and even Friends.

At 89, Whitfield appeared in BBC soap EastEnders as Sister Ruth, a nun with a secret. At 92, she was made a dame.

Her agent said she died peacefully on Friday night.

Her first starring TV role came in the BBC sitcom Beggar My Neighbour in 1966.

She went on to form her first working relationship with Terry Scott in Scott On..... before the pair teamed up again for Terry & June.

The chemistry between the unflappable Whitfield and her hare-brained husband was so solid that many viewers believed they were married in real life.

Described as the apotheosis of undemanding, middle-class, primetime comedy, Terry and June attracted audiences of 15 million during its eight-year run.

Whitfield described herself as living "in the suburban corner, in real life and in the parts I've played. Very English, and nothing wrong with that".

She also became the face of a string of adverts for Birds Eye frozen ready meals with the punchline: "It can make a dishonest woman of you."

Her big screen appearances included four Carry On films, and, in 1996, the part of Aunt Drusilla in a film adaptation of Thomas Hardy's Jude the Obscure.

In 1992, she became an unlikely icon to a new generation of fans with her portrayal of Edina's unworldly mother in the internationally successful Absolutely Fabulous.

Originally scheduled to appear in just one episode, she went on to become one of the show's most popular characters.

As the new century dawned, Whitfield continued a wide variety of roles including parts in Midsomer Murders and that retirement home for actors of a certain generation, Last of the Summer Wine.

In 2009 she appeared in The End of Time, the Doctor Who episode that was the last for David Tennant.

She was awarded an OBE in 1985 and CBE in 2000 and, in 2017, became a Dame.

[rebbonk]

R.I.P.

[Melisandre]

R. I. P great actress she ll be missed.