Dame Penelope Keith, born in Sutton, has died at the age of 86.
The much-loved British actress, best known for her roles in sitcoms The Good Life and To the Manor Born, passed away peacefully at her home in Surrey, where she had lived for more than 50 years.
A statement from her family said: "We are deeply saddened to announce that Dame Penelope Keith died peacefully whilst living with cancer at her home in Surrey where she had lived for more than 50 years.
"The family is grateful for the care and support she received throughout her treatments, and ask that their privacy be respected at this time."
Born Penelope Anne Constance Hatfield on April 2, 1940, Dame Penelope rose to fame in 1975 when she was cast as Margo Leadbetter in The Good Life, earning her a Bafta in 1977.
She won a second Bafta in 1978 for The Norman Conquests.
In 1979, she took on the role of Audrey fforbes-Hamilton in To the Manor Born, a character she called "excellent television" and who became one of her most beloved parts.
Dame Penelope told The Guardian: "I loved it because we had to do all our own stunts.
"I am a country girl at heart, and I got to ride horses again, to learn about bee keeping, to drive a two-tonne Rolls-Royce with impossible gears.
"I scaled a five-bar gate with a picnic hamper to flee a bull."
Away from the screen and stage, Dame Penelope served as president of the Actors’ Benevolent Fund for 30 years, succeeding Laurence Olivier.
She was also a trustee of Brooklands motor and aviation museum.
She was made a dame in 2014 for services to the arts and charity, honouring a career that spanned theatre, television and dedicated charitable work.
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