38 Facts About Dame Barbara Windsor

Dame Barbara Windsor joined the cast of EastEnders in 1994 and won the 1999 British Soap Award for Best Actress, before ultimately leaving the show in 2016 when her character was killed off.

Dame Barbara Windsor was born in Shoreditch, London, in 1937, the only child of John Deeks, a costermonger, and his wife, Rose, a dressmaker.

Dame Barbara Windsor moved in with a schoolfriend and her parents, although they struggled to cope with her loud behaviour.

When Dame Barbara Windsor's father came to watch a performance, she was ridiculed by the others as her father had begun working as a trolley bus conductor and had come in his uniform.

Enraged, Dame Barbara Windsor covered the girls in theatrical face powder, throwing more over the chaperone who tried to stop her.

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Shortly after, Dame Barbara Windsor made her film debut as an uncredited extra in 1954 playing a schoolgirl in The Belles of St Trinians.

Dame Barbara Windsor followed this with several other uncredited roles until she appeared in Too Hot to Handle with Jayne Mansfield.

Mansfield demanded Dame Barbara Windsor to appear at the back of the scene they shared, as she was worried Dame Barbara Windsor's blonde hair and large chest would overshadow her own.

Dame Barbara Windsor later appeared in musical shows Variety Parade, The Jack Jackson Show, and Six-Five Special, regularly singing with bands.

Dame Barbara Windsor then became a regular cabaret act at Ronnie Scott's Jazz Club in Soho, and went on to do the same at the Winston's club alongside Danny La Rue and Amanda Barrie.

Dame Barbara Windsor appeared in the comedy films Crooks in Cloisters and San Ferry Ann, the thriller film A Study in Terror, the fantasy film Chitty Chitty Bang Bang and Ken Russell's musical film The Boy Friend, and the TV sitcoms The Rag Trade and Wild, Wild Women.

Dame Barbara Windsor came to prominence with her portrayals of a "good-time girl" in nine Carry On films.

Dame Barbara Windsor was strongly identified with the Carry On films for many years, which restricted the roles she was chosen to play later in her career.

Dame Barbara Windsor reprised the role for a national tour with the National Theatre in 1993 co-starring John Challis of Only Fools and Horses fame.

Dame Barbara Windsor has said that she would have liked to have been part of the original cast.

Debilitating case of the Epstein–Barr virus forced a two-year absence from the role between 2003 and 2005, although Dame Barbara Windsor was able to make a two-episode guest appearance in 2004.

In October 2009, Dame Barbara Windsor announced she was to leave her role as Peggy Mitchell, saying she wanted to spend more time with her husband.

In July 2013, it was announced that Dame Barbara Windsor was to return for one episode, which aired on 20 September 2013.

Dame Barbara Windsor again returned for a single episode on 25 September 2014, and made a further appearance for EastEnders 30th anniversary on 17 February 2015.

In November 2015, Dame Barbara Windsor secretly filmed a return to EastEnders, which was shown in January 2016.

On 25 January 2022, by which time Dame Barbara Windsor had died, an episode aired in which Peggy's son Phil Mitchell hears his mother's voice giving him advice.

Dame Barbara Windsor hosted two series of the BBC documentary Disaster Masters in 2005.

Dame Barbara Windsor provided the voice of the Dormouse in Walt Disney's live-action adaptation of Lewis Carroll's Alice in Wonderland, directed by Tim Burton.

In September 2010, it was announced that Dame Barbara Windsor would be fronting a TV campaign for online bingo site Jackpotjoy as the Queen of Bingo.

Dame Barbara Windsor appeared as herself in one episode of Come Fly with Me in January 2011.

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Dame Barbara Windsor reprised her voice role of the Dormouse in the film Alice Through the Looking Glass.

In May 2017, Dame Barbara Windsor appeared in a cameo role as herself in BBC Television's biopic about her life, Babs, written by EastEnders scriptwriter Tony Jordan.

James, who, like Windsor, was already married, would send her a dozen red roses with a note attached with the words "Love Romeo" and even arranged to see her in Australia during her Carry On Barbara one-woman show, as he could not bear to be without her.

Dame Barbara Windsor terminated the relationship and then started dating Ronnie Knight.

Dame Barbara Windsor said that Lawrence would spy on her and Knight from telephone boxes, and only left them alone after Knight threatened him.

Dame Barbara Windsor said she never wanted children as a result of her father rejecting her after her parents' divorce.

Dame Barbara Windsor was best friends with fellow actor Anna Karen, whom she met while filming Carry On Camping and who later went on to play Peggy Mitchell's sister Sal Martin in EastEnders for 20 years.

Dame Barbara Windsor had a friendship with Amy Winehouse and in 2012, she became a patron of the Amy Winehouse Foundation and in 2014, Dame Barbara Windsor unveiled the statue of Winehouse in Camden Market.

Dame Barbara Windsor chose not to make the condition public, but it was known to her friends and colleagues.

Dame Barbara Windsor was played by Samantha Spiro in Terry Johnson's play Cleo, Camping, Emmanuelle and Dick, which premiered at the National Theatre in 1998.

Dame Barbara Windsor was appointed Member of the Order of the British Empire in the 2000 New Year Honours, and in the same year, she was the first person to be inducted into the newly created BBC Hall of Fame.

Dame Barbara Windsor was inducted into the Hackney Empire Walk of Fame on 25 May 2017.

Dame Barbara Windsor was appointed Dame Commander of the Order of the British Empire in the 2016 New Year Honours for services to charity and entertainment.