Upstairs, Downstairs actress and co-creator Jean Marsh dies aged 90
The veteran actress ‘died peacefully in bed looked after by one of her very loving carers’
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.
Jean Marsh
“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.
It was not long before she transferred to London and at the age of 12 the actress made her West End debut in The Land Of The Christmas Stockings at The Duke of York’s Theatre.
Her earliest screen appearances came in such TV classics as The Twilight Zone and Danger Man. She also appeared in Doctor Who adventures, most notably as William Hartnell’s short-lived companion Sara Kingdom.
Jon Pertwee and Jean Marsh, 20, leaving St Nicholas Church, Shepperton, after their wedding
Her most notable films are fantasy adventure film Willow (1988), thriller Frenzy (1972), and war movie The Eagle Has Landed (1976).
A minor stroke forced her to take a break in 2011 but she returned to work afterwards.
She was married to Doctor Who actor Jon Pertwee for five years before their divorce in 1960 and she also had relationships with actors Kenneth Haigh, Albert Finney and Sir Michael.
In 2012, she was made an Officer of the British Empire (OBE) for her services to drama.
She starred in other TV series including Sense And Sensibility, Doctor Who and Hawaii Five-O.
The Press Association
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