‘Happy Birthday to the Queen of Walford’: EastEnders legend Pam St Clement is seen for the first time in two years as she celebrates her 80th
She played the legendary Pat Butcher in EastEnders for 26 years.
But soap legend Pam St Clement has kept a low profile since she left the soap opera in 2012.
So fans were delighted on Wednesday when she made a rare appearance on social media to mark her 80th birthday.
Milestone: EastEnders legend Pam St Clement made a rare social media appearance on her co-star Kellie Shirley’s Instagram page as she celebrated her 80th birthday
The TV icon was last seen in public following the death of her close friend and co-star Barbara Windsor, where she fought back tears on This Morning.
But Pam looked in high spirits as she celebrated her milestone birthday with Kellie Shirley, the former EastEnders star.
Kellie, who played Carly Wicks on the BBC One soap, shared a snap of her and her children with a smiling Pam, who is one of the soaps’ longest-serving characters.
Iconic: Pam starred on the soap opera Pat Butcher for 26 years – from 1986 to 2012, making her one of the longest-serving characters on the show
Co-Star: Kellie starred alongside Pam Carly Wicks in the BBC One soap opera
She wrote: “Happy Birthday to the Queen of #Walford and the total legend who is #pamstclement #80 so much love and so glad you are in our lives!.”
Kellie’s followers flocked to the comments section to wish Pam a happy birthday, with one even sharing a touching personal story about the TV veteran.
“I LOVE PAM,” said one follower.
Birthday wish: Kellie, who played Carly Wicks on the BBC One soap, shared a snap of her and her children with a smiling Pam, who is one of the soaps’ longest-serving characters
“Happy birthday Pam! I love & miss you!’ a viewer posted.
Another gushed: “Happy birthday Pam. A wonderful lady. xx’
A meaningful memory shared by a follower pend: Pam worked behind a bar in Hastings and was staying at our hotel and could see I was struggling so she jumped behind the bar and started pouring the drinks. Happy birthday Pam! An absolute legend.”
Special Greetings: Kellie’s followers flocked to the comments section to wish Pam a happy birthday, with one even sharing a touching story
While another joked: “Oi Pat, get out of my pub… but happy birthday.”
In December 2020, Pam fought back tears as she expressed her sadness at not seeing close friend and former co-star Dame Barbara Windsor for almost a year before she was diagnosed with Alzheimer’s disease at the age of 83 died.
The screen legend’s death was confirmed by her husband Scott Mitchell shortly after she lost her six-year battle with the degenerative disease at a London care home in December 2020.
Regret: In December, Pam fought back tears as she expressed her sadness at not seeing close friend Dame Barbara Windsor for nearly a year before her death
Pam, who appeared remotely from her Oxfordshire home this morning, admitted it was Scott who kept her updated on Dame Barbara’s deteriorating condition after COVID restrictions meant keeping her away .
She said: “We have stayed in close contact. He sort of kept me up to date on everything that was going on.
“I’ve been out of the country for most of this year so I couldn’t visit them, well no one could visit them with the lockdowns and everything, it was impossible, which is sad in a way because it means I haven’t done it I’ve seen her for almost a year and that’s sad for me.’
Barbara made her debut as Peggy Mitchell in 1994, and Pam – who played film nemesis Pat Butcher – admitted she was “pretty curtsy” when her co-star arrived on set.
She said: “It was such an extraordinary thing when we knew Barbara was coming onto the show. I wanted to curtsey when she came in.
‘She said to me, ‘Please tell me if I’m not doing something right.’ She probably had more experience behind a bar than I did.”
Bond: Pam maintained a close friendship with Dame Barbara that stretched back to their time together on the BBC soap EastEnders