She was terrified when she joined EastEnders, but became the queen of the Vic, the matriarch loved by the cast
People overuse the words national treasure, but Barbara Windsor really was a national treasure. She was an icon, who then became a legend, and she truly was glamour personified. If you said the name Babs to anybody, they would know who you were talking about, and that infectious life was instantly recognisable.
I grew up watching her on screen in the likes of the Carry On films, so getting to work with her on EastEnders was such a privilege. We had met before I joined the show through the actor Michael Cashman, who had met his partner through Barbara. In the showbiz world of London, everybody knew her – she would always be at Joe Allen’s restaurant in the West End with Danny La Rue, or with her agent, and everybody would stop and stare when she walked in. She always looked so glamorous in her heels – for someone who has only 4ft 10in, she was a real tour de force.