Howe said working with the actress had been “one of the great privileges of my time at the BBC”.

“June Spencer wasn’t just a brilliant Peggy Woolley, the ultimate matriarch of Ambridge, but a brilliant actress,” he said.

“I only ever worked with her in radio, but her technique, her precision, her delivery were flawless.

“One of the cast once remarked that in all her time in the show he had only ever heard her fluff her lines the once.

“She was an actress who revelled in her craft, someone who could score a bullseye with a gently insulting cough as if it were a bon mot from Oscar Wilde.

“She was also a great company member – funny, sharp, warm, never gossipy, but with wonderful stories of the early days of radio drama, self deprecating and a great companion.”

Spencer’s family said they wanted to “pay particular tribute and thanks to the staff team at Liberham Lodge, who so lovingly cared for her in the last two years”.