Pearce, best known for role as evil Supreme Commander Servalan, had lung cancer

This article is more than 2 years old

This article is more than 2 years old

Blake’s 7 star Jacqueline Pearce has died at the age of 74, shortly after being diagnosed with lung cancer, her friend John Ainsworth has said.

How evil Servalan took over my life Read more

The actor, best known for playing the villainous Supreme Commander Servalan in the popular BBC science fiction series Blake’s 7, died at her home in Lancashire.

Ainsworth, who had been her friend for 25 years and was with her at the time, said: “She was outrageous, she was very honest and very straightforward, which didn’t always go down very well, but you knew where you were with her.

Jacqueline Pearce as Servalan. Photograph: Ronald Grant Archive

“She liked a glass of champagne and liked everyone to have a good time with her, and of course she was a brilliant actress and everyone who worked with her remembered her very fondly.”

Play Video 0:37 Jacqueline Pearce as the evil genius Supreme Commander Servalan in Blake's 7 - video

He added that Pearce had been diagnosed “a couple of weeks ago” and chose to be cared for at home after leaving hospital.

Alongside her role in Blake’s 7, which was expanded from a single episode to a regular role over four series due to her popularity, Pearce was also known for her guest role as Chessene in The Two Doctors episodes of Doctor Who in 1985, opposite Colin Baker’s version of the Time Lord.

After training at the Royal Academy of Dramatic Arts alongside Anthony Hopkins and John Hurt, she appeared in episodes of Danger Man and The Avengers, as well as the children’s dramas Moondial and Dark Season, written by Russell T Davies.

In a statement, Davies said: “It was a joy working with Jacqueline on the first drama I ever wrote, Dark Season. She was glorious, vivid, passionate, filthy and the most wonderful company. And underneath the style and the laughter, a truly fine actor.”

Her film roles included White Mischief with John Hurt, How to Get Ahead in Advertising with Richard E Grant, and Princess Caraboo with Kevin Kline.

After relocating to South Africa for several years, initially to care for orphaned monkeys, Pearce returned to the UK in 2015. Her autobiography, From Byfleet to the Bush, was published in 2012.