'Emmerdale' and 'Coronation Street' stars have led tributes to Shirley Stelfox.

Shirley Stelfox

Shirley Stelfox

The actress has sadly passed away aged 74 following a short battle with cancer, and her co-stars of past and present have now taken to social media to speak of their sadness at hearing the news.

Gemma Oaten - who quit her role as Rachel Breckle in 'Emmerdale' earlier this year - posted a photo of her, Shirley and their former co-star Paula Tilbrook on Twitter alongside the caption: "Devastated. RIP our darling Shirley Stelfox. You had me at "oh you're a cheeky arse. I like you!" God I love you (sic)."

Anthony Quinlan - who played Pete Barton - said: "So sad that Shirley Stelfox passed away. She was a real character! I was lucky enough to know and act alongside this remarkable woman."

Verity Rushworth - who starred in the soap as Donna Windsor until last year - wrote: "So sad that Shirley Stelfox passed away. She was a real character! I was lucky enough to know and act alongside this remarkable woman x (sic)."

And Tom Lister - who played villain Carl King - added: "My beautiful dear friend Shirley. How I'll miss you and the laughs that we had together. xxx (sic)"

Shirley's agent confirmed this morning (08.12.15) that she had passed away at home with her daughter Helena by her side.

In addition to her role in 'Emmerdale', she also appeared in rival soaps 'Coronation Street', 'EastEnders' and 'Brookside' and briefly played Rose in 'Keeping Up Appearances'.

Daniel Brocklebank - who played Ivan Jones in 'Emmerdale' from 2005 to 2006 and now stars as vicar Billy Mayhew in 'Corrie' - wrote on Twitter: "I'm deeply saddened to hear that the lovely Shirley Stelfox has passed away. A funny, kind, generous lady that will be much missed. (sic)"

Sally Ann Matthews - who starred in 'Emmerdale' as Sandra Briggs before reprising her role as Jenny Bradley in 'Corrie' earlier this year - also paid tribute, writing: "So sad to hear of the passing of Shirley Stelfox. A fantastically, generous actress and a lovely lady with the most wicked sense of humour x (sic)"

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