The career of the actor Lynn Dalby, who has died from the lung condition COPD aged 78, embraced drama, sitcoms and soap, as well as the West End stage, but she will be best remembered as Adam Faith’s girlfriend in Budgie on television.
Over two series (1971-72), she played Hazel Fletcher, a jobbing actor in a relationship with Budgie, the petty criminal whose real name is Ronald Bird. With comic elements thrown in, he is usually out of his depth in money-making antics that backfire, often commissioned by Charlie Endell, an underworld villain and strip club owner (played by Iain Cuthbertson). The opening credits depicted him grabbing at banknotes blowing in the wind.
