Former EastEnders actress Josephine Melville died backstage after performing in Nine Night on Thursday, Nottingham Playhouse confirmed.
The 61-year-old's death shocked many, as the Playhouse shared that “The entire company, and staff at both theatres are in a state of shock.”
The sad news comes as Ms Melville received assistance from Playhouse’s first aiders and a member of the audience who was medically qualified before paramedics arrived.
Ms Melville was treated but passed away at the scene.
The actress played Tess Parker in BBC’s EastEnders in 1986 but also acted in The Bill and Casualty.
The Playhouse added that: “Josephine was a truly wonderful and well-loved person, a revered and deeply respected performer, director, producer, archivist and writer, and a tremendous Auntie Maggie in Nine Night.”
We are deeply saddened that last night (20 Oct) the actor Josephine Melville, passed away following the performance of Nine Night, our co-production with Leeds Playhouse.
— Nottingham Playhouse (@NottmPlayhouse) October 21, 2022
Our thoughts and deep condolences are with her family and loved ones. https://t.co/O9qnBGXqkR pic.twitter.com/h1pCfchXPh
“We are offering our full support to her family, out onstage and production crew and all staff at this awful time.”
Nottingham Playhouse also confirmed that all performances of Nine Night have been cancelled.
The Playhouse's chief executive, Stephanie Sirr, said: "We send our love and condolences to Jo's family and friends.
"On a deeply tragic and extremely difficult evening we want to pay tribute to the company of Nine Night and to the whole Nottingham Playhouse team who managed the situation with empathy and professionalism."
Comments: Our rules
We want our comments to be a lively and valuable part of our community - a place where readers can debate and engage with the most important local issues. The ability to comment on our stories is a privilege, not a right, however, and that privilege may be withdrawn if it is abused or misused.
Please report any comments that break our rules.
Read the rules hereLast Updated:
Report this comment Cancel
You must verify your phone number before you can comment.
Please enter your phone number below, and a verification code will be sent to you by text message.
Please enter the six-digit verification code sent to you by SMS.
Your verification code has been sent a second time to the mobile phone number you provided.
Your verification code has been sent a third time to the mobile phone number you provided.
You have requested your verification code too many times. Please try again later.
Didn’t receive a code? Send it againThe code you entered has not been recognised.
Please try again
You have failed to enter a correct code after three attempts.
Please try again later.
Your phone number has been verified.
Your phone number has been stored with your account details. We will never use it for anything other than verifying that you are the legitimate owner of this account.