‘Keeping Up Appearances’ star Dame Patricia Routledge dead at 96
Dame Patricia Routledge, the British actor best known for portraying Hyacinth Bucket in the BBC sitcom Keeping Up Appearances, has died aged 96.
Her death was confirmed by her agent, who said in a statement, “We are deeply saddened to confirm the passing of Dame Patricia Routledge, who died peacefully in her sleep this morning surrounded by love.”
The agent continued, “Even at 96 years old, Dame Patricia’s passion for her work and for connecting with live audiences never waned, just as new generations of audiences have continued to find her through her beloved television role.”
The statement concluded, “She will be dearly missed by those closest to her and by her devoted admirers around the world.”
Keeping Up Appearances ran between 1990 and 1995, which made Routledge, who was already an esteemed actor, become a beloved British cultural figure. In this time, she won two Baftas, as well as a British Comedy Award, yet chose to walk away while the show remained at the top of its game.
In an interview for a BBC Four documentary decades later, Routledge explained her decision to leave the show, sharing, “Well, I brought it to an end, which, of course, the BBC didn’t care for very much. I thought the writer was beginning to recycle old ideas. And also, remembering the glorious Ronnie Barker, he always stopped when he was at the height of something and he always left with people saying, ‘Oh, aren’t you doing any more?’ Rather than people saying, ‘Is that still on?’”
She continued, “That’s the place to be, really, and I had other adventures to explore. I’m an actress, and I wanted to take on the stories of other people.”
Routledge was 77 when Keeping Up Appearances concluded, but retirement wasn’t on her agenda. She enjoyed more success in the 1990s with the crime drama Hetty Wainthropp Investigates, and also appeared in stage shows such as Beatrix and The Importance of Being Earnest.
While she naturally began to slow her career down in her later years, she continued to regularly stage events, such as Facing the Music, which took place in Tunbridge Wells this summer, and saw Routledge reflect upon her career.
Routledge was never married or had children. She explained to The Telegraph in 2001 how this was due to her prioritising her career, candidly sharing, “I didn’t make a decision not to be married and not to be a mother. Life just turned out like that because my involvement in acting was so total.”
No cause of death has been revealed.
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