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Boris Johnson pays heartfelt tribute to Barbara Windsor as PM hails her campaign work

Watch: Dame Barbara Windsor dies aged 83

Boris Johnson has joined in heartfelt tributes to actress Dame Barbara Windsor, saying she was “so much more than a great pub landlady”.

The actress, famed for her role in the Carry On films and then playing Peggy Mitchell in BBC soap Eastenders, has died at the age of 83.

The star was diagnosed with Alzheimer’s disease in 2014 and made the news public in 2018.

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.”

Dame Barbara Windsor’s husband Scott Mitchell announced her death, saying his “heart or life will never feel the same without you”.

He said she had died peacefully at 8.35pm on Thursday at a London care home, adding that her final weeks were “typical of how she lived her life” and “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,” he said.

“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.”

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.”

Born in Shoreditch, London, in 1937, Dame Barbara made her stage debut at 13 and her West End debut in 1952.

She went on to become a much-loved character in the Carry On films, appearing in nine of the films before making her debut as Peggy in 1994.

Read more: Dame Barbara Windsor urged people to ‘make a stand against dementia’

The character, with her famous cry of: “get outta my pub!”, 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, she announced she would be leaving the soap again in order to spend more time with her husband Scott, who she married in 2000, and returned for cameo appearances in the soap over the next few years until 2016 when she played Peggy for the final time.

The actress was made a dame in the 2016 New Year’s Honours list for her services to charity and entertainment.

Fellow actors and politicians joined in touching tributes to Dame Barbara.

Patsy Palmer, who played Bianca Jackson on the BBC soap, shared pictures of the pair together, as well as a photograph of a young Dame Barbara, on Instagram, writing: “I’m extremely sad to hear that my friend ‘Dame’ Babara Windsor has passed away . I’m sitting here thinking of the 100’s of memories we shared .

“Too many to comprehend. We were like family for a long time, ups downs, ins and outs but you will never meet a more professional actress than Babs.”

Little Britain star Matt Lucas said “it’s not an overstatement to say I think the whole country is in mourning today”.

He added: “She delighted us on stage and sparkled on screen in a long and illustrious career. She also worked tirelessly for charity, and continued to do so, even when her own health was failing her.”

David Walliams, Lucas’ Little Britain co-star, said Dame Barbara was the “unofficial Queen of England, an icon for over half a century and treasured by the nation”.

The Alzheimer’s Society praised Dame Barbara and her husband for their work bringing awareness to the disease.

In a statement, the charity said: “Dame Barbara Windsor was an amazingly true, much-loved national treasure, and in speaking out about her experiences shone like a beacon for others affected by dementia.

“Our heart goes out to her husband Scott Mitchell and all their family and friends at this very sad time. Alzheimer’s Society is incredibly grateful to have had Barbara and her husband Scott’s support – what they achieved over the last couple of years for dementia has been truly awe-inspiring.”

Alzheimer’s Research UK said in a statement its staff were “devastated”, with director Tim Parry adding: “Dame Barbara’s work in helping to rally support and demystify an often-misunderstood condition made a difference to us and many others and further adds to her legacy as a one of the nation’s favourites.

“She was a friend to our charity, and we are desperately sad to lose her.”

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