The EastEnders actress first met Brian at a film preview shortly after she joined the cast of EastEnders, at a time when Brian was still married to his first wife, Chrissie, and they had three young children together.
Brian later recounted on BBC Morning Live how Anita literally saved his life during a tumultuous health scare that included a heart attack and severe sciatica amid recovery from a gardening mishap.
Away from the show, Anita shares a beautiful life with her husband, Queen's legendary guitarist, Sir Brian May.
Expressing gratitude for her unwavering support, Brian said: "So when you get that bad, you're just grateful to be alive at the end of it and its thanks to Anita that I am, she's been there the whole way through it.
Anita Dobson, 75, originally stepped into the shoes of Angie in 1985, acting opposite Leslie Grantham as her on-screen hubby 'Dirty' Den Watts, establishing themselves as the iconic landlord and landlady duo of the Queen Vic.
