Los Angeles: Actress Sandra Caron, beloved for her roles in the Carry On films and as the enigmatic “Mumsie” on Channel 4’s The Crystal Maze, has died aged 89, her family has confirmed.
Caron passed away from natural causes in Los Angeles following a six-week hospital stay prompted by extreme weight loss and several serious falls.
Best known to comedy fans for her cheeky appearance in Carry On Camping alongside close friend Barbara Windsor, Caron later became a cult favorite as the fortune-telling Mumsie on The Crystal Maze between 1990 and 1993. She briefly returned to the series as “Auntie Sabrina” after producers jokingly claimed Mumsie was “away”.
Her film career included roles in The Belles of St Trinian’s, Dracula, The Bliss of Mrs. Blossom, and Digby: The Biggest Dog in the World. Caron’s final on-screen appearance came in 1995 in the sitcom Agony Again, starring her close friend Maureen Lipman.
In 1991, Caron published Alma Cogan: The Girl With the Laugh in Her Voice, a warmly received biography of her sister, Alma Cogan, one of Britain’s biggest musical stars of the 1950s and 60s. The book further cemented her reputation as a devoted custodian of her sister’s legacy.
Born in 1936, Caron grew up in a lively Kensington household with Alma and their mother. Their home became a renowned showbusiness hub, welcoming figures such as Noel Coward, Danny Kaye, Cary Grant, Tommy Steele — and even members of The Beatles.
Caron had lived in the United States since 2015 with her husband, American actor Brian Greene, whom she married in 1985. While the couple had no children together, news of her death was shared by Greene’s son, Marc.
Tributes from across the entertainment industry are expected in the coming days as fans mourn the loss of a distinctive talent who charmed generations of viewers on both stage and screen.