A veteran television star remembered for her “beautiful smile” has died just days after celebrating her 95th birthday. Actress and singer Jean Dike — known professionally as June Marlow — died on February 22 at her beloved home overlooking Sutton Harbour in Plymouth, surrounded by family. Jean spent her final weeks in the apartment she had lived in for 35 years, supported by carers from St Luke’s Hospice Plymouth and her daughter Kate Van Dike, who moved in to care for her full-time.
Tributes quickly poured in for the glamorous entertainer — a familiar face on both BBC and ITV — as well as a devoted mother and grandmother, with her family describing her life as one marked by “dignity, elegance and grace.” Kate praised the hospice team who enabled Jean to remain at home during her final days. She said: “They treated Mum with such tenderness and acknowledged her as the most important person. We could never have cared for her at home without their help.” She added that the nurses’ arrival often felt like ‘the cavalry arriving’ as her mother’s health declined.
Despite becoming increasingly frail, Jean remained determined not to dwell on her condition. “Mum didn’t want to focus on that,” Kate explained. “She kept looking forward and was always pragmatic and driven.”
Friends say that resilience defined the performer, who spent decades entertaining audiences and maintaining a strong connection to her hometown of Plymouth.
Even in her final days, the warmth that fans and loved ones remembered never faded. Kate revealed: “Even at the end she was still able to flash her beautiful smile.”
She is survived by her family, who say they are comforted by the fact she was able to spend her final days in the place she loved most, surrounded by those who loved her.
Born on January 15, 1931, Jean grew up in Plymouth’s close-knit Barbican community, where her flair for entertaining was evident from a young age.
Teachers were said to be captivated by her performances in school nativity plays, where she not only sang but delighted classmates with impressions of Hollywood icons including Mae West.
That early passion led to a long and varied career on screen. Jean appeared in a number of BBC productions over the decades, including adaptations of The Pickwick Papers and Jamaica Inn, as well as the children’s series MI High, where she shared scenes with comedy favourite June Whitfield.
She later became a familiar face to ITV audiences through multiple appearances in Doc Martin, starring opposite Martin Clunes, cementing her reputation as a dependable character actress with a warm on-screen presence.
Remarkably, Jean continued working well into her later years. Her final television role came at the age of 87, when she played Ethel — an accident victim who had fallen and impaled her hand on a rusty nail.