Ross Kemp remembered Dame Barbara Windsor's "true talent" as he spoke at her funeral.

Ross Kemp

Ross Kemp

The legendary actress was laid to rest on Friday (08.01.21) and Ross Kemp, who played her on-screen son in 'EastEnders', paid tribute to her "incredible energy" and bravery.

He said: "Dame Barbara Windsor, MBE, not a bad epitaph for a girl from Stoke Newington. But then there was much more to Barbara than the many honours she received. She was a true star that burned brighter and longer than many of her famous contemporaries.

"She was truly talented, a triple threat: She could sing, she could dance and she could act. A night at the theatre with Barbara could end up with an impromptu knees-up, including songs and a tap dance. She was a star with incredible energy ... Barbara, what a life you had.

"You were a star of stage and screen for some 60 years. You were brave enough to publicly face Alzheimer’s and help remove the stigma attached to it. You were a Dame of the British Empire, a Member of the British Empire, the nation loved you, we loved you. And we all will miss you very much."

And Ross also spoke of the wonderful relationship between Barbara and her husband Scott.

In his eulogy, shared with The Sun newspaper, Ross said: "Now, a few men may have loved her too, but there was only one true love of her life. And that was always Scott. Twenty-seven years they were together, and married for 20 of them. When they first got together, people said they wouldn’t last; how wrong they were. They spent so many fabulous years, working together, working for each other, and truly loving each other. When the diagnosis came they both knew there would be no happy ending. They kept it to themselves and many relationships at this point would have failed but they decided to face it together. In 2018, they turned a negative into a positive. They went to No10 to demand money for dementia research and social care. Barbara and Scott’s Dementia Revolution raised £4 million."


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