(Photo: Getty Images)
June Spencer, the actress who began her stint on BBC Radio 4 soap opera The Archers in 1950, has announced her retirement at age 103.
Spencer's final appearance as Peggy Woolley, the soap's longest-serving character, aired on July 31. The actress said in a BBC press release today (August 8): "In 1950 I helped to plant an acorn. It took root and in January 1951 it was planted out and called The Archers.
"Over the years it has thrived and become a splendid great tree with many branches. But now this old branch, known as Peggy, has become weak and unsafe so I decided it was high time she ‘boughed’ out, so I have duly lopped her."
Spencer first played Peggy Woolley from 1950 to 1954, and then again from 1961 to 2022. Last year she met Camilla, Duchess of Cornwall, who is a longtime fan of The Archers, at an event to celebrate the show's 70th birthday. A picture of their meeting appears at the top of this post.
The Duchess of Cornwall said of Spencer's retirement: "Peggy is a true national treasure who has been part of my life, and millions of others, for as long as I can remember..."
The Archers follows a rural community in the fictional English village of Ambridge. Six episodes air on BBC Radio 4 each week, meaning the show has now run for more than 19,500 episodes. 
The show's editor Jeremy Howe said of Spencer's incredible stint in Ambridge: "Her Peggy is one of the great creations of broadcasting – utterly charming, utterly ruthless, sharp as a knife and witty in spades. To think that June has commanded the airwaves over an Archers career of over 70 years beggars belief."
Are you a regular The Archers listener like the Duchess of Cornwall?