Upstairs, Downstairs actress and co-creator Jean Marsh has died at the age of 90.
The Emmy-award winning star also co-created historical drama series The House Of Eliott.
Her friend, director Sir Michael Lindsay-Hogg, said in a statement issued through her agent: “Jean died peacefully in bed looked after by one of her very loving carers.
“You could say we were very close for 60 years. She was as wise and funny as anyone I ever met, as well as being very pretty and kind, and talented as both an actress and writer.
“An instinctively empathetic person who was loved by everyone who met her. We spoke on the phone almost every day for the past 40 years.”
She was best known for playing the role of Rose in the British drama television series Upstairs, Downstairs, which was co-created by a team also including Dame Eileen Atkins.
For her portrayal she won an Emmy at the 1976 awards ceremony in the category of outstanding lead actress in a limited series.
She starred in other TV series including Sense And Sensibility, Doctor Who and Hawaii Five-O.
