Tinky Winky actor Simon Shelton Barnes dies aged 52/ 2018

Tinky Winky actor Simon Shelton Barnes dies aged 52/ 2018



The actor who played Tinky Winky in BBC children's TV series Teletubbies died aged 52 of hypothermia after collapsing on the streets of Liverpool, a friend confirmed today.



Simon Shelton Barnes, a father-of-three from Ampthill in Bedfordshire, had trained as a ballet dancer and choreographer before taking on the role as the purple Teletubby who carried a 'magic bag' in the show from 1998 to 2001.



Today, his flatmate Judith Tynan, who is the cousin of his ex-wife Emma Robbins and lived with him on the Wirral for the final year of his life, paid tribute to the 'charming and handsome' actor.



She told MailOnline: 'I'm very floored at losing him, he was just the best company. He was just the best person to live with and we got on terribly well.





'I'm gobsmacked at losing him. He was charming and handsome and delicate and so lovely to be around. He wasn't difficult, he was pleasurable and a delicate man.'



She said the Teletubbies was his 'pièce de résistance' and they 'laughed a lot about it because it was silly and he used to tell me that costume weighed 60lbs'.



Ms Tynan continued: 'It was a big to-do to wear it because it was just a big thing, but it made him - it made his life and put him on the map.



'It was a very good time in his life and he was privileged to have been part of that success, I think. I think it worked for him.



'If you're famous everybody knows your face - but they didn't know his face, but he had a big time of it, and it worked. And he had a good living from it.'





Ms Tynan said he had gone into photography in recent year, adding: 'He was a handsome chap; very good looking.



'I used to say to him every morning, 'Goodness Simon, how do you look so good? He was just a very good looking chap. He was a great flatmate.'



She insisted that she and Barnes were not a couple but just 'very, very good friends - and everybody used to think we were a couple, but we weren't'.



Merseyside Police confirmed to MailOnline today that officers were called to reports that a man had died in the Mann Island area of Liverpool last Wednesday.



Yesterday, John Simmit, who was Dipsy in the show, tweeted: 'What a week! RIP Simon Shelton aka Tinky Winky: remembering the many good times. Rest easy.



'Lots of messaging between cast and crew as we became a tight bunch over six years on location. We'll give him an appropriate send off in a couple of weeks.'



The post by Simmit, who is now a stand-up comedian, was retweeted by Po actress Pui Fan Lee, who now presents the CBeebies programme Show Me, Show Me.



Barnes, whose character was known for carrying the red bag, was the brother-in-law of Poldark actor Robert Daws and uncle of Inbetweeners star Emily Atack.



Atack, who played Charlotte Hinchcliffe in the E4 comedy, said: 'My wonderful uncle Simon Barnes has been taken from us all so suddenly.'



She wrote in an Instagram post that he was the 'kindest and most talented man you could ever wish to meet', adding: 'Loved by all who knew him, and will be forever.'



Simmit, Pui and Barnes appeared in the show - whose characters had the catchphrase 'Eh Oh!' - alongside Nikky Smedley, who played Laa Laa.



Barnes was initially reluctant to take on the role that led to him being sent fan mail from adults as well as children and feeling like a member of The Beatles.



He once said: 'I started my career as a ballet dancer and had just started working as a choreographer. I thought it was a bit of a risky move but it certainly paid off.



'We used to receive a lot of fan mail from kids and parents. I suppose we were a bit like the Beatles or the Take That of children's television.'





Also paying tribute to him was singer Paul McCartney's brother Mike McGear, who is a second cousin of Barnes's former wife, actress Emma Robbins.



Mr McGear wrote on Facebook: 'So sad to hear about Si. He was a lovely lad… and will be dancing along Uncle Bills bar, knocking Mum and Dad, Milly and Ginny, Mike and Betts drinks off, as we talk! Love to you and kids from me and mine.'



And Barnes's son Henry said: 'I lost my lovely dad on Wednesday, he was the kindest and most gentle man I knew and I love him more than anything.



'I always used to be embarrassed as a child that he was a dancer and an actor but now I couldn't be more proud.



'He is in a better place now and I know he wouldn't want me to be sad, so I'm going to live my life the way he would want me to.'



His daughter Lydia Barnes added: 'I love you so much Dad... always have, always will. The most beautiful man in the world. Forever in my heart.'