EastEnders stars paid tribute to the iconic Roberta Taylor who died aged 76.

Taylor had emphysema, and a fall two months ago worsened her underlying ill health with pneumonia.

She played Irene Raymond in EastEnders from 1997-2000 before moving to ITV soap The Bill and taking on the character of Inspector Gina Gold.

The official soap Instagram account posted a lengthy tribute to the ‘formidable’ soap actress.

‘We’re deeply saddened to hear that Roberta Taylor has passed away. Roberta made an impact with audiences from the first moment she arrived in Albert Square with her performance as the formidable Irene Raymond,’ they said.

‘Roberta will always be remembered fondly by everyone that worked with her and our love and thoughts go to her family and friends.’

EastEnders actress Diane Parish (Denise Fox) wrote: ‘An incredible, kind and fiercely talented woman. Rest in Peace.’

Actor Nicholas Pegg wrote on Twitter/X: ‘Beautiful, brilliant Roberta Taylor. Adored by millions for her roles in The Bill and EastEnders. Outstanding in Shakespeare, Inspector Morse, and all points in between.

‘A mighty raconteur, a demon at Scrabble, and a dear friend. Thoughts are with her family and her beloved Pete.’

Taylor began her career as a dental nurse but continued to take drama classes in her spare time.

She married ropemaker Victor Taylor in 1966, and the couple had a son, Elliott, in the same year.

In 1973, a friend advised her to try out for drama school, and she was successful. She auditioned on the same day as Peter Guinness, who would eventually become her second husband. They married in 1997 after twenty years together, and Guinness even popped up in a few episodes of The Bill playing a romantic interest for her.

She refined her acting skills working for the Glasgow Citizens Theatre from 1980 to 1992. During this period she was cast in A Waste of Time, in which her co-stars were Rupert Everett and Gary Oldman.

She arrived in Albert Square five years later, playing the matriarch of the Hills family. Her storylines included a romance with Terry Raymond (Gavin Richards) and an affair with her toyboy lodger Troy Harvey (Jamie Jarvis) which was discovered in a dramatic Christmas day episode. The grocery store owner was also involved in comical scenes, often based around her love for trying new trends such as feng shui, aromatherapy, and meditation.

Explaining her decision to leave, she told The Mirror: ‘I gave over much of my life to the show and if I was to carry on at such a pace I’d have to continue to put my life on hold.

‘I didn’t want to do things at half-cock.