Rosemary Leach, the Room With a View star, dies aged 81

Actress Rosemary Leach, best known for her Bafta-nominated roles in the films A Room With A View and That'll Be The Day, has died after a short illness, her agent has said.

Leach, who also played Grace in episodes of the television sitcom My Family, was 81. 

Her agent Caroline de Wolfe said in a statement: “It is with great sadness I must report the news that Rosemary Leach died in hospital yesterday, Saturday 21st October, after a short illness.”

Leach made her television debut in the early Sixties, and later appeared in series such as Power Game (1966), The Jewel Crown (1982),  The Charmer (1987), which starred Nigel Havers, and The Tomorrow People (1995).

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Leach was also a star of the stage, winning an Olivier Award in 1982 for her performance in the play 84 Charing Cross Road.

She is survived by her husband Colin Starkey.