On the Buses actress Anna Karen died in a house fire ‘started by a cigarette’ after she fell asleep while smoking, neighbours have said.
The 85-year-old, fondly remembered for her role as Olive in 70s comedy, was heard screaming ‘help me, help me’ as the blaze spread across her terraced home in Ilford, east London, on Tuesday.
Fire chiefs are still investigating the cause of the tragic inferno, which a crew of around 20 firefighters were called to tackle at around 10.30pm, though it is not thought to be suspicious.
The wheelchair-bound actress was confined to the floor of her three-bed property, but she was pronounced dead at the scene after fire crews brought the blaze under control within an hour.
It is believed she was in bed and fell asleep with a cigarette, The Sun reports.
A source said: ‘She was apparently in bed at the time of the fire. It’s thought she fell asleep with a cigarette.’
Anna’s agent Shane Collins added: ‘We don’t know if it was an electrical fault or whether it was because she was smoking.’
Tributes have since flooded in for the star – who was lifelong friends with Barbara Windsor – this afternoon, including from Bucks Fizz singer Cheryl Baker, who described her as ‘an absolute treasure, both on and off the screen’.
She boasted a bulging CV of acting credits, including appearances in the Carry On films and a string of pantomimes – but she will be fondly remembered for her role as Olive in 70s comedy On The Buses.
Anna Karen in January 2020 holding a copy of the On The Buses board game
Anna Karen made her name in On The Bus, which centred on the Number 11 bus, at the Luxton and District Motor Traction Company
Police officers at the scene of the fatal fire in Windsor Road, Ilford, on Tuesday morning
Anna Karen was best known for her role as Olive in the 1970s sitcom On The Buses
The star was remembered by friends and colleagues as ‘an absolute treasure, both on and off the screen’
Police officers at the scene of a house fire on Windsor Road, Ilford, where Anna Karen, the last surviving star of the hit ITV sitcom On The Buses, has died at the age of 85
Ms Karen also starred as Aunt Sal, sister of Peggy Mitchell, in EastEnders for which she was best known – an on-and-off part spanning more than 20 years.
She was married to fellow comedic actor Terry Duggan, who also appeared in On The Buses as Nobby, while also featuring in the likes of Only Fools and Horses and Are You Being Served? He died in 2008 aged 76.
A family friend said this afternoon: ‘We are absolutely horrified at the news about Anna.’
Neighbours told MailOnline they were alerted to the fire after hearing screams of ‘help me, help me,’ coming from the inside of Karen’s home.
Sumi Popat, 62 said: ‘It was around 10.30pm and we could hear loud screams of ‘help me, help me.’ I rushed out and there was smoke coming out of Anna’s house and the screams for help got louder. Some of us immediately called the fire brigade.’
Kirti Munnasinghe, 42 said that he was returning from work at around 10.30pm and heard the screams just as he was entering his front door.
He added: ‘I could hear someone screaming ‘help me’ and realised they were coming from Anna’s house. Then I noticed smoke started coming out. We all know her around here, it’s a very close knit community and she was very popular. As more smoke came out the screams for help were getting more desperate, it was very frightening.’
Neighbours revealed that Anna lived alone in the three bedroom property and was confined to the ground floor as she was disabled and used a wheelchair. The former actress was being looked after by carers who visited four times per day.
Mrs Popat revealed that she often cooked for Anna, who particularly enjoyed Indian food, adding: ‘We all knew about Anna’s famous past but none of us made a big deal of it. There’s a big Asian community around here but she was just one of us.
‘Anna loved Indian food and my sister and I would regularly make it for her because she was on her own, disabled and it cheered her up.’
Neighbour Sunny Soodh said: ‘It was awful to hear those screams. We all knew Anna, she was a lovely lady but very isolated in recent times. About three fire engines turned up, two ambulances and the police but they couldn’t save her. It’s heart breaking and we’ll miss her.’
Fire chiefs are still investigating the cause of the tragic inferno, which a crew of around 20 firefighters were called to tackle at around 10.30pm on Windsor Road, Ilford
A forensic officer at the scene of a house fire on Windsor Road, Ilford, where Anna Karen, the last surviving star of the hit ITV sitcom On The Buses, has died at the age of 85
The 85-year-old also appeared in EastEnders as Aunt Sal, sister of Peggy Mitchell, played by Barbara Windsor
Michael Robbins, Anna Karen, Doris Hare and Reg Varney star in On The Buses in 1972
A police officer at the scene of a house fire on Windsor Road, Ilford, where Anna Karen, the last surviving star of the hit ITV sitcom On The Buses, has died at the age of 85
Karen is understood to have lived alone with her dog – who managed to escape the fire alive – and was unwell for some time
Karen was married to fellow comedic actor Terry Duggan, who also appeared in On The Buses as Nobby, while also featuring in the likes of Only Fools and Horses and Are You Being Served? He died in 2008 aged 76
Sivalai Pavananthakumar, 33, said: ‘There was a lot of smoke, and flames, people in the street had seen what was happening and came out to try and help. The fire brigade and police were here quickly and kicked down the door, there was so much smoke.’
He added: ‘I recognised her and would see her everyday when I took my children to school, she was a nice old lady and always said hello.’
Another neighbour added: ‘I knew her from Eastenders, it was like having a celebrity living in the street, she was a lovely old lady and always spoke to everyone.’
Karen was born in Durban, South Africa as Ann McCall to an Irish father and an English mother. She appeared in productions in South Africa before moving to London aged 17 and enrolling in The London School of Dramatic Art.
Karen made her screen debut in the titillating 1961 film about naturists, Nudist Memories. She had a small part in Ken Loach’s gritty 1967 classic Poor Cow and appeared alongside Windsor in 1969 in Carry on Camping.
But it was the On the Buses sitcom – which centred on the Number 11 bus, at the Luxton and District Motor Traction Company – that would make her famous.
Her character Olive was the sexually frustrated younger sister of Stan Butler, played by Reg Varney and was one of the hit comedy’s main stars, alongside Stan’s sidekick Jack, played by Bob Grant, and their nemesis, Stephen Lewis’s Blakey.
When Lewis died in 2015, she paid tribute outside his funeral service in east London, telling mourners: ‘I just want to say that he will be very sadly missed. He was an extremely talented and very funny man and wonderful to work with.’
After the Buses series ran its course, she appeared in various comedies and pantos with the likes of Ian Lavender, Kenneth Williams and Dick Emery before later playing Aunt Sal in EastEnders.
She was close friends with Barbara Windsor and one of her last known public appearances was attending her funeral in January last year.
She married fellow comic actor Terry Duggan in 1967, living under this surname away from showbusiness, and bringing up his daughter from a previous relationship, Gloria.
Karen is understood to have lived alone with her dog – who managed to escape the fire alive – and was unwell for some time.
Health concerns led to her pulling out of a big TV comedy which sources said would have been a fitting end to her career.
Friends added that she refused to go into a home, preferring to live in her own property, with regular visits from carers.
It is not known whether she died before the fire or as a result of the blaze – a fact set to be confirmed by coroners at a later date.
Anna Karen, pictured starring in The Rag Trade, a British sitcom in the 1960s
Her character Olive was the sexually frustrated younger sister of Stan Butler, played by Reg Varney and was one of the hit comedy’s main stars, alongside Stan’s sidekick Jack, played by Bob Grant, and their nemesis, Stephen Lewis’s Blakey (pictured together)
Karen was born in Durban, South Africa as Ann McCall to an Irish father and an English mother
A London Fire Brigade spokesperson said: ‘Sadly, a woman has died following a house fire on Windsor Road in Ilford.
‘Part of the ground floor of a mid-terrace house was damaged by fire. Sadly a woman was pronounced dead at the scene.
‘The Brigade was called at 2240 and the fire was under control by 2338.
‘Three fire engines and around 20 firefighters from Ilford and Barking fire stations attended the incident. The cause of the fire is under investigation.’
A London Ambulance Service spokesperson added: ‘We were called at 10:43pm yesterday evening (22 February) to reports of a fire at a residential address on Windsor Road, Ilford.
‘We sent a paramedic in a fast response car and an incident response officer. Sadly, a person died at the scene.’
