British actor Pik-Sen Lim, best known for her roles in the 1970s sitcom Mind Your Language and in Doctor Who and Johnny English Reborn, has died, aged 80.
Born in British Malaya in 1944 to Malayan Chinese parents, Lim, who was nicknamed “Pixie”, moved to England when she was just 16 to pursue a career in acting and studied at the London School of Dramatic Arts.
She quickly rose to fame playing Captain Chin Lee in the 1971 Doctor Who serial The Mind of Evil, starring opposite Jon Pertwee’s Doctor.
Lim also played Chinese student Chung Su-Lee in ITV’s Mind Your Language, a sitcom set in a classroom in an adult education college in London where people from all over the world learned English. The show was aired from 1977 until 1985 and was sold to countries all over North America, Asia and Africa.
Pik-Sen also featured in Albion Market (1985) and Night and Day (2003), Arabian Nights (2000), The Bill (2005) and in Little Britain as a side character alongside David Walliams and Matt Lucas.
Elsewhere, Lim starred in Coronation Street, army drama Spearhead and the American horror series Vampire Academy. She also starred as Killer Cleaner in 2011’s Johnny English Reborn and served as the narrator on the video game series Dark Souls. Her last role was as Madame Tan in the HBO sci-fi series The Nevers.
Paying tribute to the star on Instagram, actor Daniel York Loh wrote: “An iconic figure in so many ways, I'd seen her on TV in Mind Your Language amongst other things when I was a kid.
“She was so affectionate, so witty, so brilliantly scabrous and absolutely honest about the rubbish this industry deals actors of our heritage – unlike a fair few others who actually try and cape it. We'll miss you so much but thank you, Pixi, for blessing our lives with your unique presence.”
Francoise Pascal, who played Danielle in Mind Your Language, added her own tribute saying: “'I am so sorry to hear that Pixi is no longer with us! The last time I saw her, many years ago, we were signing together. She was a very accomplished actress.
“She was admired by many. She was shy and hated any fuss being made around her! RIP. My thoughts and prayers are with her daughter Sara and her family.”
The British Film Institute previously described Lim as “the most recognisable Chinese actor on British television throughout the 1970s and 1980s.”
