Actress Dame Patricia Routledge has died aged 96, her agent said.

The star was best known for playing Hyacinth Bucket in the sitcom, Keeping Up Appearances.

A statement to the PA news agency said: “We are deeply saddened to confirm the passing of Dame Patricia Routledge, who died peacefully in her sleep this morning, surrounded by love.

“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 roles.

“She will be dearly missed by those closest to her and by her devoted admirers around the world.”

Dame Patricia Routledge has died aged 96

Dame Patricia won an Olivier Award for her role as the Old Lady in Leonard Bernstein’s operetta Candide in 1988, and a Tony Award for her part as Alice Challice in Darling Of The Day in 1968, and worked in a number of productions across six decades.

She was born in Birkenhead, Merseyside, where her father was a high-class gents’ outfitter, where ‘keeping up appearances’ was the name of the game.

She read English at Liverpool University, where she appeared in student shows, later making her professional debut at the Liverpool Playhouse.

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In 2017 she was honoured at Buckingham Palace as she was made a Dame Commander of the British Empire for her services to the theatre and charity.

Speaking in 2017, she said she had no favoured role from her long career on the stage, adding: “I don’t do beloved roles, I’ve just had a wonderfully interesting time with so many roles.”

Dame Patricia never married and had no children.

She once said: “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.”