Keeping Up Appearances star Josephine Tewson dies aged 91

Josephine Tewson, a star of British television sitcoms, has died age 91, her agent has confirmed.

Tewson, best-known for her roles in Keeping Up Appearances and Last Of The Summer Wine, died at Denville Hall, a London care home for people in the entertainment industry, on Thursday night.

A statement from Jean Diamond of Diamond Management, her agent, said: “It is with great sadness that we announce the passing of Josephine Tewson. Josephine passed away peacefully at Denville Hall at the age of 91.”

Born in Hampstead, north London, in 1931, Tewson attended grammar school before enrolling at the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art, from which she graduated in 1952.

Minor parts in shows such as Z-Cars and the Charlie Drake Show came her way during the 1960s, when she also regularly appeared in sketches alongside comedians Ronnie Corbett and Ronnie Barker in Hark at Barker and Frost on Sunday.

She also played Edna Hawkins in the first six series of the ITV sitcom Shelley, which aired during the 1980s and early 90s.

However, she was best known for playing the pragmatic Elizabeth Warden, neighbour and reluctant confidant of social-climbing snob Hyacinth Bucket in the much loved BBC sitcom Keeping Up Appearances.

Roy Clarke, the writer behind the show, also provided Tewson with her most memorable late career role, playing Miss Davenport in Last of the Summer Wine between 2003 and 2010.

In 2012, Tewson launched a one-woman show entitled Still Keeping Up Appearances? and toured across the UK.