Emmerdale star Meg Johnson, who played Pearl Ladderbanks in the ITV soap, has sadly died, her family confirmed.
A statement from Meg’s talent agency Jorg Betts Associates, ITV’s Emmerdale and her family confirmed: “It is with great sadness that we announce that actress Meg Johnson passed away peacefully yesterday evening surrounded by her family.
“Meg was a kind and wonderful lady, full of warmth and always with a twinkle in her eye.
“Meg had an outstanding career that ended with her playing Pearl Ladderbanks in Emmerdale from 2003.
“Meg had dementia for the last few years, but battled on personally and professionally regardless.
(Image: ITV)
“She will be greatly missed by everyone who knew her.”
She was 86, and starred in 760 episodes of Emmerdale in total.
Some of Meg’s most iconic Emmerdale storylines included being trapped in a fire during the Sugden house explosion, committing embezzlement to feed her gambling addiction and even faking Alzheimer’s to stop pals from discovering she was an addict.
(Image: TV Grab)
She took an extended break from the soap in 2019, with her character going away on a caravan holiday, but made sporadic guest appearances in 2020 until the Covid-19 pandemic forced her to stop working.
She was last seen on screen in March 2020.
Devastated fans have already been paying tribute to the soap legend, with one writing on Twitter: “RIP Meg, she was a wonderful actress and was fabulous as Pearl. Always glamorous, and always had heart. Lovely lady, my thoughts are with her family.”
Someone else echoed: “RIP to both a great actress and character. Sending condolences to her loved ones.”
(Image: WireImage)
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As a third fan followed up: “So sorry to hear this… Meg was a great actress… sending love & hugs to all her family & friends.”
“Heartbreaking news. Thinking of Meg’s family and friends at this sad time, thank you for legendary Pearl she was a fantastic character,” someone else agreed.
Emmerdale wasn’t the only soap Meg appeared in, as she also starred in 78 episodes of Coronation Street as Eunice Gee – also appearing as Brenda Holden on the ITV cobbles.
She also had roles in Brookside, Taggart, Victoria Wood’s comedy series and Lovejoy.
Source: Celebrities - dailystar.co.uk
