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Sandy Ratcliff dead: EastEnders' Sue Osman actress dies aged 70


The former EastEnders star will be remembered for playing Sue Osman in the BBC soap from 1985 until 1989. A friend of Sandy Ratcliff told The Sun the actress had suffered three strokes in five years and had been diagnosed with cancer. “She didn’t have lots of people in her life but her son used to visit and took care of her with shopping and things,” they said. “She moved into assisted living about two years ago because she couldn’t manage on her own anymore. It’s such sad news,” they added. “She was a lovely woman and will be badly missed.”

The publication reports it is understood Sandy was found dead on Sunday morning having died overnight and that her death has been referred to the coroner.

A spokesperson for the ambulance service did not name Sandy in a statement obtained by the publication, but said: “We sent two single responders inc are and an ambulance crew.

“Sadly, a person was found dead at the scene.”

Nejdet Salih, who played Sandy’s on-screen hubby Ali in the BBC soap opera, said he was saddened by the news of her death.

“It’s very sad. I remember the first time I auditioned for the show, we had this instant chemistry and banter.

“I was a young actor and she helped me develop so much. We had a lot of fun on the show and had some really good storylines.”

andy had a number of harrowing plots during her tenure on EastEnders, including one in which her character lost a baby to cot death.

The loss of her son eventually lead to mental health problems and was one of the show’s first controversial plots.

Her on-screen persona also dealt with phantom pregnancy and marital breakdown.

Sandy’s acting career kicked off in 1971, with the late star playing a schizophrenic teenage girl in Ken Loach’s Family Life.

She starred in several other films and TV shows, including The Balance of Nature, Minder and The Gentle Touch.

The late actress also forged a modelling career at one stage, earning her the title: “the face of the ’70s”.

However, EastEnders made her a household name and inevitably propelled her to stardom.

Born in Islington, London on October 2, 1948, Sandy had a difficult upbringing and was expelled from her grammar school at the age of 12.

She went on to have numerous jobs before taking up acting, including waitressing, disc-jockeying and performing as a guitarist in the rock groups Tropical Appetite and Escalator.

Aged 23 her modelling career began to take off and she was cast as “The face of the ’70s” by royal photographer Lord Snowdon.

Her work as a model helped her move into film, though not all her roles were as successful as the Ken Loach BAFTA-nominated film Family Life.

She starred alongside Dame Helen Mirren in the 1980’s flick Hussy, and she also appeared in Chris Petit’s British road movie Radio On.



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