Bill Owen back

Bill Owen, the actor who played Compo in the BBC One comedy Last of the Summer Wine, has died after a battle with stomach and bowel cancer. Nick Higham reports: "It was in The Last of the Summer Wine that he became a household name" The 85-year-old star died on Monday afternoon at King Edward VII Hospital in central London.

His son, Tom Owen, said he was taken ill in France last month where he and the rest of the BBC One drama's cast were filming a Millennium special.Mr Owen said: "He hadn't been ill very long. It all happened very quickly." The actor had been described as "very poorly" following surgery to remove tumours.

Last Of The Summer Wine, which follows the adventures of three old friends who refuse to grow up, has been a staple of BBC schedules since 1973. Bill Owen's scruffy, wellie-wearing Compo - with his unrequited love for Nora Batty - became one of British television's enduring favourites. Owen's co-star Peter Sallis, who played Clegg in the show, called creation "the greatest comedy character of his time".

Co-star Peter Sallis talks about how Bill Owen saved his life He said: "I am dreadfully sorry, but it has not taken me by surprise "Bill said to me on location the other day 'I want to go on living', but I'm afraid his great will was not strong enough. "He was a good friend and he created, with his author (Roy Clarke), the greatest comedy character of his time."

Peter Salmon, Controller of BBC One, said: "Bill's wonderful portrayal of Compo recalled the little boy in every man. He touched the hearts of generations of viewers over the last two decades because, through Compo, he communicated a real sense of fun. "He debunked the myth that growing old means losing the taste for mischief-making and adventure. He will be sorely missed."

BBC Head of Comedy, Paul Jackson, said: "Since the first time Bill Owen donned Compo's trademark woolly hat and Wellington boots in 1973, an army of loyal fans has followed his adventures in Last of the Summer Wine on BBC One and delighted in his portrayal of the scruffy but loveable rogue. "Bill Owen was a gifted actor whose range spanned broad humour and powerful drama. It is typical of the professionalism of the man that he was working on location for a new series of Last of the Summer Wine almost to the end, and his final performance as Compo will be a fitting tribute to his talent."

The Yorkshire town of Holmfirth where Last of the Summer Wine was filmed took Owen to its heart, but he was actually born in Acton, west London. Owen drifted into acting after winning a talent contest doing impressions of famous stars. He took character roles in many films, including many Carry On films. He also appeared on the London stage - playing Mack the Knife in the Threepenny Opera at the Royal Court - and his musical The Matchgirl was staged in the West End in the mid-1960s.

But Compo made him a household name. He bought a cottage in Holmfirth and regarded the area as home. He told a local newspaper last year: "Compo has become a very important part of my life over the years. "He's a great character who has brought me in the evening of my life a kind of adulation which is not normal for an actor of my age. I have been very lucky."