Pam St Clement, 83, played character Pat Butcher for three decades between 1986 and 2016.
One of the longest running characters on the show, having joined a year after it first aired, she became a fan favourite and was known for her friendship and rivalry with Barbara Windsor’s Peggy Mitchell.
Ms St Clement has also appeared on other television shows including Casualty and Countryfile, but it is her lengthy time on the BBC soap she is most well known for.
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As such Eastenders fan Jonathan Margetts was “star-struck” when he saw her in Oxford on Sunday, September 20.
The 36-year-old said: “It’s quite funny, we caught each other’s eye, and I said you are from Eastenders aren’t you?
“She just smiled. I then said it is lovely to meet you, and she said you haven’t me yet.”
This was outside Marks & Spencer and although Mr Margetts initially walked away, he then decided to go back and have a proper chat with Ms St Clement.
The Cholsey local said the television legend was “lovely” as they talked in Boots on topics including his diamond earring.
“We spoke for a couple of minutes,” he said. “I just spoke to her about how I grew up watching her and said she was brilliant.”
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He added: “I was a bit star struck to be honest.”
Indeed, Mr Margetts – who works in construction – described Pat Butcher as “100%” his favourite character and said he especially enjoyed watching her drama with husband Frank
Since meeting the icon, he has put a photo up on TikTok where it has scored 30,000 views (name ItsThatGuy1998).