English actress Dame Barbara Windsor has died at the age of 83. Her husband Scott Mitchell confirmed the news in a statement to the PA news agency on Thursday, The Mirror reports.
Barbara — who is best known for playing no-nonsense pub landlady Peggy Mitchell in EastEnders — was diagnosed with Alzheimer’s Disease in 2014.
Scott said in a statement: “It is with deep sadness that I can confirm that my darling wife Barbara passed away at 8.35pm on Thursday 10 December at a London care home. 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.”
Fans have already taken to social media to pay their respects, with Twitter user @TumbleweedKing writing: “Such a sad sad start to the day. Rest in peace Babs. You were brilliant and may your star shine bright wherever you are.”
Meanwhile, @joeythorpe96 added: “Legendary woman and great actress, RIP Barbara you will be missed.” And @WellesleyDOW wrote: “Legend. Used to love watching carry on films with my dad on Sundays.”
Barbara rose to fame in the 1960s after appearing in a number of Carry On films. However, it was her role in the popular British soap EastEnders that shot her to stardom. She won two British Soap Awards for her work on the show: Best Actress in 1999 and a Lifetime Achievement Award in 2009. Barbara left the show for good in 2016, after making on-and-off appearances for several years due to her battle with Alzheimer’s.
Scott has been open about his wife’s diagnosis since her condition was made public, regularly sharing updates on her health.
In October 2018, he revealed his devastation after Barbara forgot who he was for the first time. He told The Sun at the time: “About two weeks ago, she’d had a bath and I was drying her back, when suddenly she looked at me with almost fearful apprehension.
“She said, ‘Who are you? What are you doing here?’ and I replied, ‘It’s me Bar, it’s Scott, your husband’. She snapped out of it almost instantly but then became very distressed and cried, ‘Oh Scott, it’s my memory, I’m so sorry’.”