{"id":14318,"date":"2026-09-18T15:50:00","date_gmt":"2026-09-18T14:50:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/thehotedit.com\/index.php\/2026\/09\/18\/coronation-street-and-doc-martin-star-stephanie-cole-dies-aged-84\/"},"modified":"2026-09-18T15:50:00","modified_gmt":"2026-09-18T14:50:00","slug":"coronation-street-and-doc-martin-star-stephanie-cole-dies-aged-84","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/thehotedit.com\/index.php\/2026\/09\/18\/coronation-street-and-doc-martin-star-stephanie-cole-dies-aged-84\/","title":{"rendered":"Coronation Street and Doc Martin star Stephanie Cole dies aged 84"},"content":{"rendered":"<p> <br \/>\n<\/p>\n<div id=\"article-body\">\n<h2 class=\"LeadText_lead-text__wd_PA __className_a783f9\" data-testid=\"leadtext\">Actress Stephanie Cole, best known for roles in Coronation Street, Doc Martin and Tenko, has died aged 84 after living with Alzheimer\u2019s disease for years, her agent said<\/h2>\n<div class=\"Byline_byline-container__K_Owl\" data-testid=\"byline\"><span class=\"Byline_byline-content-wrapper__Imque\" data-testid=\"byline-content\"><\/p>\n<div class=\"Byline_author-badge-date-wrapper__Q7jj1\">\n<p><span class=\"\" data-testid=\"byline-publishedDate\">15:50, 18 Sep 2026<\/span><span class=\"ArticleTimestamp_updated-date__7qD4Q ArticleTimestamp_updated-date-with-published__iFKpF\" data-testid=\"byline-updatedDate\">Updated 17:18, 18 Sep 2026<\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<p><\/span><\/div>\n<p><button type=\"button\" class=\"SlideViewerButton_slide-viewer-button__BDJoG\" aria-label=\"Open image viewer\" aria-haspopup=\"dialog\" aria-controls=\"image-lightbox\"><\/p>\n<div class=\"ImageEmbed_image-embed__0T8WX ImageEmbed_image-lead__Ti3qQ\" data-testid=\"leadimage\" data-tmdatatrack=\"content-unit\" data-tmdatatrack-articleid=\"37678275\">\n<div class=\"ImageEmbed_image-container__2AIQm\">\n<figure class=\"Figure_figure__Uce4f\" style=\"--figure-aspect-ratio:1.5\"><\/figure>\n<\/div><figcaption class=\"ImageCaption_caption__j7HRu\" data-testid=\"image-caption\">\n<p aria-label=\"Stephanie was known for playing Sylvia Goodwin, the mother of Roy Cropper in Coronation Street\" class=\"ImageCaption_caption-title__ccyQU\" data-testid=\"caption-title\">Stephanie was known for playing Sylvia Goodwin, the mother of Roy Cropper in Coronation Street<cite aria-label=\"Image: ITV\" class=\"ImageCaption_caption-credit__wlx1W\" data-testid=\"caption-credit\">(Image: ITV)<\/cite><\/p>\n<\/figcaption><\/div>\n<p><\/button><\/p>\n<p class=\"Paragraph_paragraph-text__PVKlh\" data-tmdatatrack=\"content-unit\" data-tmdatatrack-type=\"paragraph\">Actress Stephanie Cole, best known for her roles in <a target=\"_blank\" aria-label=\"Coronation StreetLink opens in a new tab.\" class=\"TextLink_text-link__dBSS0 TextLink_enabled__dJF3l\" href=\"https:\/\/www.ok.co.uk\/latest\/coronation-street\" rel=\"follow\" tabindex=\"0\" target=\"_blank\">Coronation Street<!-- --><\/a>, Tenko and Doc Martin, has died aged 84, her agent said.<!-- --><\/p>\n<p class=\"Paragraph_paragraph-text__PVKlh\" data-tmdatatrack=\"content-unit\" data-tmdatatrack-type=\"paragraph\">A statement from her agent John Grant, on behalf of her family, said: \u201cIt is with great sadness that we announce the passing of Stephanie Cole, OBE.<\/p>\n<p class=\"Paragraph_paragraph-text__PVKlh\" data-tmdatatrack=\"content-unit\" data-tmdatatrack-type=\"paragraph\">\u201cShe passed away this morning at the age of 84. Stephanie had been living with Alzheimer\u2019s disease for some years. Stephanie was an extraordinary talent whose long and distinguished career included many iconic performances in theatre and television.<\/p>\n<div data-testid=\"image-group\"><button type=\"button\" class=\"SlideViewerButton_slide-viewer-button__BDJoG\" aria-label=\"Open image viewer\" aria-haspopup=\"dialog\" aria-controls=\"image-lightbox\"><\/p>\n<div class=\"ImageEmbed_image-embed__0T8WX false\" data-testid=\"imageembed-37678351\" data-tmdatatrack=\"content-unit\" data-tmdatatrack-articleid=\"37678351\" data-tmdatatrack-type=\"image\">\n<div class=\"ImageEmbed_image-container__2AIQm\">\n<figure class=\"Figure_figure__Uce4f\" style=\"--figure-aspect-ratio:1.4492753623188406\"><img decoding=\"async\" alt=\"In Doc Martin, Stephanie played Joan, the aunt of Martin Clunes' character\" loading=\"lazy\" sizes=\"(max-width: 458px) 458px, (max-width: 615px) 615px, 1200px\" src=\"https:\/\/i2-prod.ok.co.uk\/article37678351.ece\/ALTERNATES\/s1200e\/3_09_DOC_MARTIN_c.jpg\" srcset=\"https:\/\/i2-prod.ok.co.uk\/article37678351.ece\/ALTERNATES\/s458b\/3_09_DOC_MARTIN_c.jpg 458w, https:\/\/i2-prod.ok.co.uk\/article37678351.ece\/ALTERNATES\/s615b\/3_09_DOC_MARTIN_c.jpg 615w, https:\/\/i2-prod.ok.co.uk\/article37678351.ece\/ALTERNATES\/s1200e\/3_09_DOC_MARTIN_c.jpg 1200w\"\/><\/figure>\n<\/div><figcaption class=\"ImageCaption_caption__j7HRu\" data-testid=\"image-caption\">\n<p aria-label=\"In Doc Martin, Stephanie played Joan, the aunt of Martin Clunes' character\" class=\"ImageCaption_caption-title__ccyQU\" data-testid=\"caption-title\">In Doc Martin, Stephanie played Joan, the aunt of Martin Clunes&#8217; character<cite aria-label=\"Image: ITV\" class=\"ImageCaption_caption-credit__wlx1W\" data-testid=\"caption-credit\">(Image: ITV)<\/cite><\/p>\n<\/figcaption><\/div>\n<p><\/button><\/div>\n<p class=\"Paragraph_paragraph-text__PVKlh\" data-tmdatatrack=\"content-unit\" data-tmdatatrack-type=\"paragraph\">\u201cShe brought joy to millions through her many much-loved roles in sitcom and drama. She will also be remembered for her tireless work supporting mental health charities. During this incredibly difficult time, the family kindly requests privacy.\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"Paragraph_paragraph-text__PVKlh\" data-tmdatatrack=\"content-unit\" data-tmdatatrack-type=\"paragraph\">The actress was best known for her roles as Roy Cropper&#8217;s mum, Sylvia Goodwin, on ITV&#8217;s <a target=\"_blank\" aria-label=\"\" class=\"TextLink_text-link__dBSS0 TextLink_enabled__dJF3l\" href=\"https:\/\/www.ok.co.uk\/latest\/coronation-street\" rel=\"follow\" tabindex=\"0\" target=\"\">Coronation Street<\/a> between 2011 and 2013, and as Joan Norton in Doc Martin. She won the British Soap Award for best comedy performance for her role in Corrie.<\/p>\n<p class=\"Paragraph_paragraph-text__PVKlh\" data-tmdatatrack=\"content-unit\" data-tmdatatrack-type=\"paragraph\">One of her other best-known screen roles was playing Dr Beatrice Mason in the drama Tenko, which ran from 1981 until 1985 and followed the lives of British women in Singapore after the Japanese invasion and their consequent confinement in a Japanese prisoner of war camp.<\/p>\n<p class=\"Paragraph_paragraph-text__PVKlh\" data-tmdatatrack=\"content-unit\" data-tmdatatrack-type=\"paragraph\">During the same time, Cole also played Delphine Featherstone, nicknamed The Black Widow, in the BBC comedy Open All Hours.<\/p>\n<div data-testid=\"image-group\"><button type=\"button\" class=\"SlideViewerButton_slide-viewer-button__BDJoG\" aria-label=\"Open image viewer\" aria-haspopup=\"dialog\" aria-controls=\"image-lightbox\"><\/p>\n<div class=\"ImageEmbed_image-embed__0T8WX false\" data-testid=\"imageembed-37678721\" data-tmdatatrack=\"content-unit\" data-tmdatatrack-articleid=\"37678721\" data-tmdatatrack-type=\"image\">\n<div class=\"ImageEmbed_image-container__2AIQm\">\n<figure class=\"Figure_figure__Uce4f\" style=\"--figure-aspect-ratio:1.5\"><img decoding=\"async\" alt=\"Stephanie Cole as Aunt Ann in Gentleman Jack\" loading=\"lazy\" sizes=\"(max-width: 458px) 458px, (max-width: 615px) 615px, 1200px\" src=\"https:\/\/i2-prod.ok.co.uk\/article37678721.ece\/ALTERNATES\/s1200e\/0_Gentleman-Jack-S21Gentleman-Jack-S2-Ep-1.jpg\" srcset=\"https:\/\/i2-prod.ok.co.uk\/article37678721.ece\/ALTERNATES\/s458b\/0_Gentleman-Jack-S21Gentleman-Jack-S2-Ep-1.jpg 458w, https:\/\/i2-prod.ok.co.uk\/article37678721.ece\/ALTERNATES\/s615b\/0_Gentleman-Jack-S21Gentleman-Jack-S2-Ep-1.jpg 615w, https:\/\/i2-prod.ok.co.uk\/article37678721.ece\/ALTERNATES\/s1200e\/0_Gentleman-Jack-S21Gentleman-Jack-S2-Ep-1.jpg 1200w\"\/><\/figure>\n<\/div><figcaption class=\"ImageCaption_caption__j7HRu\" data-testid=\"image-caption\">\n<p aria-label=\"Stephanie Cole as Aunt Ann in Gentleman Jack\" class=\"ImageCaption_caption-title__ccyQU\" data-testid=\"caption-title\">Stephanie Cole as Aunt Ann in Gentleman Jack<cite aria-label=\"Image: BBC\/Lookout Point\/HBO\/Aimee Spinks\" class=\"ImageCaption_caption-credit__wlx1W\" data-testid=\"caption-credit\">(Image: BBC\/Lookout Point\/HBO\/Aimee Spinks)<\/cite><\/p>\n<\/figcaption><\/div>\n<p><\/button><\/div>\n<p class=\"Paragraph_paragraph-text__PVKlh\" data-tmdatatrack=\"content-unit\" data-tmdatatrack-type=\"paragraph\">In 1988, she also joined the likes of Thora Hird, Maggie Smith, Julie Walters and Patricia Routledge in the first season of Talking Heads \u2013 performing the role of Muriel.<\/p>\n<p class=\"Paragraph_paragraph-text__PVKlh\" data-tmdatatrack=\"content-unit\" data-tmdatatrack-type=\"paragraph\">Her other notable roles include in Still Open All Hours, in which she reprised her Open All Hours character Mrs Featherstone, The Cleaner and Gentleman Jack.<\/p>\n<p class=\"Paragraph_paragraph-text__PVKlh\" data-tmdatatrack=\"content-unit\" data-tmdatatrack-type=\"paragraph\">She won the British Comedy Award for best actress for 1990s sitcom Waiting For God, about residents of a retirement home. Later roles also came in Doctors, Doc Martin, Midsomer Murders, Coronation Street, Inside No 9 and The Cleaner.<\/p>\n<p class=\"Paragraph_paragraph-text__PVKlh\" data-tmdatatrack=\"content-unit\" data-tmdatatrack-type=\"paragraph\">Cole also had an extensive career in the theatre, with roles in King Lear, A Passionate Woman, Noises Off and Talking Heads: A Cream Cracker Under The Settee.<\/p>\n<p class=\"Paragraph_paragraph-text__PVKlh\" data-tmdatatrack=\"content-unit\" data-tmdatatrack-type=\"paragraph\">Born in Solihull, Warwickshire, Cole trained at the Bristol Old Vic Theatre School after making her stage debut at the age of 17 \u2013 playing the 90-year-old medium Madame Arcati in Noel Coward\u2019s Blithe Spirit. In 2004, she returned to the same role aged 63 when the play was revived at the West End\u2019s Savoy Theatre.<\/p>\n<p class=\"Paragraph_paragraph-text__PVKlh\" data-tmdatatrack=\"content-unit\" data-tmdatatrack-type=\"paragraph\">In 2005, she was made an Officer of the Order of the British Empire for her services to drama, elderly people, and to mental health charities.<\/p>\n<div data-testid=\"image-group\"><button type=\"button\" class=\"SlideViewerButton_slide-viewer-button__BDJoG\" aria-label=\"Open image viewer\" aria-haspopup=\"dialog\" aria-controls=\"image-lightbox\"><\/p>\n<div class=\"ImageEmbed_image-embed__0T8WX false\" data-testid=\"imageembed-37678536\" data-tmdatatrack=\"content-unit\" data-tmdatatrack-articleid=\"37678536\" data-tmdatatrack-type=\"image\">\n<div class=\"ImageEmbed_image-container__2AIQm\">\n<figure class=\"Figure_figure__Uce4f\" style=\"--figure-aspect-ratio:0.6977777777777778\"><img decoding=\"async\" alt=\"In 2005, she was made an Officer of the Order of the British Empire for her services to drama, elderly people, and to mental health charities\" loading=\"lazy\" sizes=\"(max-width: 458px) 458px, (max-width: 615px) 615px, 1200px\" src=\"https:\/\/i2-prod.ok.co.uk\/article37678536.ece\/ALTERNATES\/s1200e\/2_Stephanie-Cole-death.jpg\" srcset=\"https:\/\/i2-prod.ok.co.uk\/article37678536.ece\/ALTERNATES\/s458b\/2_Stephanie-Cole-death.jpg 458w, https:\/\/i2-prod.ok.co.uk\/article37678536.ece\/ALTERNATES\/s615b\/2_Stephanie-Cole-death.jpg 615w, https:\/\/i2-prod.ok.co.uk\/article37678536.ece\/ALTERNATES\/s1200e\/2_Stephanie-Cole-death.jpg 1200w\"\/><\/figure>\n<\/div><figcaption class=\"ImageCaption_caption__j7HRu\" data-testid=\"image-caption\">\n<p aria-label=\"In 2005, she was made an Officer of the Order of the British Empire for her services to drama, elderly people, and to mental health charities\" class=\"ImageCaption_caption-title__ccyQU\" data-testid=\"caption-title\">In 2005, she was made an Officer of the Order of the British Empire for her services to drama, elderly people, and to mental health charities<cite aria-label=\"Image: Fiona Hanson\/PA Wire\" class=\"ImageCaption_caption-credit__wlx1W\" data-testid=\"caption-credit\">(Image: Fiona Hanson\/PA Wire)<\/cite><\/p>\n<\/figcaption><\/div>\n<p><\/button><\/div>\n<p class=\"Paragraph_paragraph-text__PVKlh\" data-tmdatatrack=\"content-unit\" data-tmdatatrack-type=\"paragraph\">Michelle Dyson, chief executive of Alzheimer\u2019s Society, said: \u201cWe are deeply saddened by the news that Stephanie Cole has died with dementia. Stephanie brought joy to millions through a remarkable career spanning decades, and our thoughts are with her family, friends and all those who loved her.<\/p>\n<p class=\"Paragraph_paragraph-text__PVKlh\" data-tmdatatrack=\"content-unit\" data-tmdatatrack-type=\"paragraph\">\u201cIt is heartbreaking that her later years were impacted by dementia, the UK\u2019s biggest killer. Dementia devastates lives, but a problem of this scale won\u2019t go away on its own. We need everyone talking about it and working together to create a future where dementia no longer devastates lives.<\/p>\n<p class=\"Paragraph_paragraph-text__PVKlh\" data-tmdatatrack=\"content-unit\" data-tmdatatrack-type=\"paragraph\">\u201cAnyone affected by dementia can contact Alzheimer\u2019s Society\u2019s Dementia Support Line on 0333 150 3456 or visit alzheimers.org.uk for expert advice and support.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<p><br \/>\n<br \/><a href=\"https:\/\/www.ok.co.uk\/celebrity-news\/coronation-street-doc-martin-star-37678251\">Source link <\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Actress Stephanie Cole, best known for roles in Coronation Street, Doc Martin and Tenko, has died aged 84 after living with Alzheimer\u2019s disease for years, her agent said 15:50, 18 Sep 2026Updated 17:18, 18 Sep 2026 Stephanie was known for playing Sylvia Goodwin, the mother of Roy Cropper in Coronation Street(Image: ITV) Actress Stephanie Cole, [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":14319,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/i2-prod.ok.co.uk\/article37678275.ece\/ALTERNATES\/s1200d\/2_CORONATION-STREET.jpg","fifu_image_alt":"","jnews-multi-image_gallery":[],"jnews_single_post":[],"jnews_primary_category":[],"jnews_social_meta":[],"jnews_override_counter":[],"footnotes":""},"categories":[28],"tags":[496,9365,2550,2546,495,4367,16678,609,3949,3475,485,16679,845],"class_list":["post-14318","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-celebrity","tag-aged","tag-cole","tag-coronation","tag-coronation-street","tag-dies","tag-doc","tag-doc-martin","tag-drama","tag-martin","tag-sitcom","tag-star","tag-stephanie","tag-street"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/thehotedit.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/14318","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/thehotedit.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/thehotedit.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/thehotedit.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/thehotedit.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=14318"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/thehotedit.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/14318\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/thehotedit.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/14319"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/thehotedit.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=14318"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/thehotedit.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=14318"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/thehotedit.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=14318"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}