FORMER actor and Clacton MP Giles Watling has paid tribute to actress Jean Boht - best known for the role of Nellie Boswell in the hit sitcom Bread.

The star, who died at the age of 91, had been battling dementia.

Boht had a long and varied career on stage and screen but it was her role in 1980s sitcom Bread, created by Carla Lane, for which she was best known.

Running from 1986 to 1991, the show was watched by more than 20 million people at its peak and Boht won a British Comedy Award for best TV comedy actress.

Giles, who lives in Frinton, starred as Oswald the vicar in four series of the hit show.

Giles said: “I was so lucky to have worked with such a talented and generous woman.

"Jean was so talented and she delivered Carla Lane’s rants with precision and great comic awareness.

"It was an honour knowing her. I feel so sad for her lovely daughters, Hannah and Jessie, who only lost their dad and Jean’s husband, the brilliant Carl Davis, early last month.

"The generosity wasn’t only on stage and in front of the cameras - I often stayed at their house in Barnes when working in West London and they took care of me royally. A sad loss.”

Born in Bebingdon in 1932, Boht began her career as a £1-a-week student at the Liverpool Playhouse and went on to join the Bristol Old Vic and Manchester Companies before returning to Liverpool to star alongside Sir Anthony Hopkins, Lynda La Plante and Sir Patrick Stewart.

She also known for her appearances on shows such as Some Mothers Do ‘Ave ‘Em, Last Of The Summer Wine, Brighton Belles, Doctors, Grange Hill, Juliet Bravo and Boys From The Blackstuff.

Her film roles included appearances in The Girl In A Swing, Bad Night For The Blues and Mothers And Daughters.

A statement from her family said: “It is with overwhelming sadness that we must announce that Jean Boht passed away on Tuesday, September 12.

“Jean had been battling vascular dementia and Alzheimer’s disease with the indefatigable spirit for which she was both beloved and renowned.

“She was a resident at Denville Hall, the home for members of the theatrical profession.”

Boht was married to the award-winning composer Carl Davis, who died last month.

They had two children and three grandchildren.