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Doc Martin star June Marlow has passed away at the age of 95 just weeks after celebrating her birthday.
The actress, whose real name was Jean Dike, died on February 22 at her home overlooking Sutton Harbour in Plymouth with her loved ones by her side, just weeks after celebrating her 95th birthday on January 15.
Jean is survived by her adoring family, with her daughter Kate - an actress, comedy performer and sketch writer who shared a very close bond with her mother and was her PA for the last three years - paying tribute to her last week.
The actress was best known for Doc Martin and her last TV appearance was on the show alongside Martin Clumes at the age of 87.
The episode saw Jean playing Ethel, an elderly woman who had fallen and got a rusty nail lodged in her hand.
Seemingly knowing it was to be her last on-screen gig, Jean reportedly told her famous co-star: 'If this is my swansong, then I'm more than happy it's with you, Martin.'
Doc Martin star June Marlow has passed away at the age of 95, just weeks after celebrating her birthday
The actress, whose real name was Jean Dike, died on February 22 at her home overlooking Sutton Harbour in Plymouth with her loved ones by her side
Jean spent her final weeks in the apartment she had lived in for 35 years, supported by carers from St Luke's Hospice Plymouth and her daughter Kate Van Dike, who moved in to care for her full-time.
Kate insisted her mum did not want to dwell on her heath, as she said: 'Mum didn't want to focus on that.
'She kept looking forward and was always pragmatic and driven.'
Jean's family announced her death last month with a post shared on the Facebook page of her late husband's The Van Dike Club.
It read: 'A Van Dike family announcement.
'The one and only Jean Christine Dike (née Moulder), "Jeanie" to all who loved her, known professionally as the singing star and actress June Marlow, passed away peacefully and beautifully at home yesterday evening in Kate’s arms, with Adelaide and Rich holding her hands, soon after being visited by other family members and encircled in all our love and gratitude, for all that she gave us and for how she showed us the way in life.
'An ever loving and inspirational Wife, Mother, Grandmother, Great Grandmother and Mother in Law, a woman of unwavering strength, grace and dignity to the end. Jeanie will stay in our hearts always, her beautiful voice will be forever cherished and celebrated as one of the most successful British female singers of the jazz era.
'We couldn't be prouder or more thankful for you Jeanie, as the song goes, More Than You Know. Jean Christine Dike, AKA June Marlow. 15/01/31-22/02/26.'
Jean's daughter Kate said of the treatment her mother received a the hospice: 'St Luke's ensured that this very discerning, successful person was able to do things her own way, and they were here to support me and the family too.
'They treated Mum with such tenderness and acknowledged her as the most important person. We could never have cared for her at home without their help.'
Revealing her mother didn't want to have to move into a hospice, Kate said in a blog for St Luke's Hospice Plymouth: 'Mum's ever polite, half joking reply was, "There was so much more I wanted to do! But thank you so much for everything you have done for me. I could not have asked for more".'
Jean's family announced her death last month with a post shared on the Facebook page of her late husband's The Van Dike Club
The actress was best known for Doc Martin and her last TV appearance was on the show alongside Martin Clumes at the age of 87
As Jean's acting career took off, she adopted the stage name June Marlow which she became known for
She added: 'Her lovely GP suggested that Mum's frailty and increasing need for specialist support meant she could refer her to St Luke's for nursing care at home.'
Teachers at Jean's primary school, Castle Street Infants School, in the 1930s recognised her talents quickly.
Jean was just 13 years old when she made her first professional recording with the BBC Concert Orchestra.
She is said to have travelled alone on the train to London from her hometown of Plymouth and back, earning herself 15 guineas (£15.75 in today's money) for the gig.
Three years later, Jean appeared on ITV talent competition Opportunity Knocks hosted by Hughie Green.
As more doors opened for Jean professionally, she met her husband Peter Van Dike, a musician and photographer who played double bass with a comedy band she travelled with.
The pair quickly married while on tour together and their marriage lasted for 40 years until he passed away in 1988.
It was a few years after the birth of Jean's children that she ventured into acting - and later starred in the likes of MI High with June Whitfield and in several series of the hugely popular Doc Martin.
As Jean's acting career took off, she adopted the stage name June Marlow which she became known for.
Later in life after the couple had children, Peter opened the Van Dike Club in Exmouth Road, hosting artists and bands in the late 1960s and early 1970s
The club was an early venue for many bands and artists who went on to have huge fame, such as Pink Floyd, Status Quo, and Eric Clapton.
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