Penelope Keith

Actress Dame Penelope Keith, best known for her role in The Good Life, has passed away at the age of 86. She famously played Margo Leadbetter in the classic British sitcom and the former lady of the manor, Audrey Fforbes-Hamilton, in To the Manor Born in the late 70s and early 80s.

The last TV programme she was in was Saving Country Houses, in which she followed the passionate owners of Britain's country houses, from cafes to craft fairs and glamping, as they "do whatever it takes to keep their historic homes in one piece".

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The 10-episode series is available on Channel 4 On Demand, where snippets from the show is shared on Instagram and YouTube.

A statement released on Monday on behalf of her family: "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."

The actress grew up in Clapham, south London, before it became a middle-class enclave, and in Clacton in Essex. Her father left when she was a baby. When she was six, although not a Catholic, she was sent to a convent boarding school run by French nuns.

Originally named Penelope Hatfield, she took the surname Keith from her mother’s second husband, although she has made it clear that her relationship with her stepfather was troubled. "I realised when I was very young that he didn’t like me," she said, as reported in 2007.

On her own admission, she has the stiff-upper-lip attitude of a generation that thought it better not to dwell on such things.

Reflecting on her career in the entertainment industy, she said: "The ageism in the business is dreadful, I find it appalling. There are all these statistics about the population ageing and you’ve only got to look at the amount of people at airports or out shopping – most of them are middle-aged or older and they’re the people with the money. All the young are in debt. Is it that advertisers are not very bright?"

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