Former Last Of The Summer Wine and Coronation Street star Jean Fergusson has died aged 74.
The actor was best known for playing the outspoken Marina for 25 years on the long-running BBC sitcom.
The BBC first reported news of Joan’s death, with tributes subsequently paid on social media.
‘Allo Allo’ actress Vicki Michelle tweeted: “Shocked & saddened to hear Jean Fergusson has passed... Lovely lady, fabulous actress.
“Saw her Sunday at #SuPollard’s birthday, said she wasn’t feeling well. @benstockbiz and I planned to take her out next week. Can’t believe she’s gone. (sic)“
As well as her long-running role on Last Of The Summer Wine, Jean also made several appearances as various characters in Corrie.
The most recent was from 2010 to 2011 when she played Dorothy Hoyle, who became one of John Stapes’ murder victims.
Jean also enjoyed a successful and acclaimed theatre career, and she was nominated for an Olivier Award in 1998 for her performance as British comic and music hall star Hylda Baker.
Most recently, she made a handful of appearances in daytime soap Doctors.
During an appearance on Pointless Celebrities in 2017, Joan admitted she had somewhat tired of her role as Marina prior to Last Of The Summer Wine’s cancellation in 2010.
She said: “Funnily enough more towards the end [of the series], I was always the one in the low-cut blouse and the mini skirt or the shorts.
“When I got - shall we say - a little bit older, it wasn’t quite the same getting all dressed up in the morning in a pair of little mini shorts and a very low-cut blouse. But we battled through. We got on the bike and off we went.”
