Archers actress Sara Coward dies of cancer, aged 69
The voice of Caroline Sterling was diagnosed with terminal cancer last year.
The Archers actress Sara Coward has died of cancer at the age of 69.
Coward had played Caroline Sterling on the much-loved BBC Radio 4 drama since 1977.
Announcing her death, Archers editor Huw Kennair-Jones described her as a "gifted actress with a unique voice".
Coward learned of her terminal cancer last year after finding a lump on her neck and swelling in her right arm.
Speaking to the Radio Times earlier this year from her palliative care home in Leamington Spa, she said: "I would prefer it to be over quickly."
She learned of the diagnosis shortly after recovering from breast cancer and a mastectomy.
As well as her celebrated radio role, Coward was a writer and stage actor.
She also spent eight years working for the Samaritans charity in Stratford-upon-Avon.