June Brown, the legendary TV actress who has died at the age of 95, revealed she was so nervous at meeting The Queen on one of their several encounters that she almost fell over.
The star, who was awarded an OBE in the New Year’s Honours list just months ago, revealed that when she’d picked up her MBE at Buckingham Palace in 2008, she had almost tripped over as she made her way towards The Queen.
Speaking to the Radio Times years later, she added that she’d been so excited by her royal encounter that when The Queen told her she enjoyed EastEnders, she replied ”I didn’t think you’d see it as it clashes with your dinner.”
It wasn’t her first meeting with royalty. The actress entertained The Queen on a visit to the set of EastEnders in 2001 where they chatted as the star had her make up done.
June Brown died at her home in Surrey on April 3rd 2022 at the age of 95. Her family said she had passed away ”very peacefully”.
As news of her death was announced, the team at EastEnders shared their sadness, saying ”there are not enough words to describe how much June was loved and adored by everyone at EastEnders, her loving warmth, wit and great humour will never be forgotten.”
The Culture Secretary, Nadine Dorries, said ”Today we’ve lost a true national treasure but my goodness what a life she has led. Rest in peace.”
The Director General of the BBC, Tim Davie, said ””June Brown was a brilliantly talented actor who was loved by millions. Her performances as the incomparable Dot Cotton delivered some of the most memorable moments in soap history.”
June Brown’s role as Dot Cotton remained her most famous. She first took to screens as the East End stalwart in 1985 and went on to appear in thousands of episodes. It was an iconic role that came after a long and successful career on stage and on TV.
Born in Suffolk in 1927, she went on to serve in the Wrens before training to be an actress. She won many awards for her role as Dot Cotton and was nominated for a BAFTA in 2008, only the second soap star to be gain such an accolade.
