The family of Dame Penelope Keith have announced that the actress died today (Monday, June 29) at the age of 86 at her home in Surrey after a battle with cancer.
She initially acted on stage as part of the Royal Shakespeare Comany and won an Olivier Award for her performance in Donkeys’ Years in 1976.
Fame followed thanks to her roles in two hugely popular sitcoms, starring as Margo Leadbetter in The Good Life (for which she won a BAFTA) and as Audrey fforbes-Hamilton in To the Manor Born.
Other notable television shows included in The Norman Conquests, for which she won a second BAFTA, Executive Stress, No Job for a Lady and Next of Kin (1995–1997.
She returned to the theatre in the 2000s, receiving critical acclaim for playing Madam Arcati in Blithe Spirit and Lady Bracknell in The Importance of Being Earnest.
Her acting career, and her wide-ranging charity work including succeeding Lord Olivier as president of the Actors's Benevolent Fund, saw her appointed Dame Commander of the Order of the British Empire in the 2014 New Year Honours.
Here are 15 memorable quotes from the actress over the years.
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9. Penelope Keith on...the arts
"Everyone wants instant everything, and they want instant success, but I always think you should treat things in the arts like a garden, and let them grow." | Getty Images
10. Penelope Keith on...retiring
"I don't think actors ever retire, they just stop being asked to work." | Getty Images
11. Penelope Keith on...television comedy
"With a play, you do it and it's gone. Films always date. Television drama always dates. Television comedy, for some reason, seems to go on." | Getty Images
12. Penelope Keith on...friends
"I think I'm a better actress for having friends and interests outside the theatre. I wouldn't want to live my life surrounded by other actors all the time." | Getty Images