The actor who played Tinky Winky in the beloved children’s TV show, Simon Shelton Barnes, died in heartbreaking circumstances back in 2018, aged only 52 years old
Ever since it first aired, children’s TV show Teletubbies has been a firm favourite with kids throughout the country.
The legacy of the characters Tinky Winky, Dipsy, Laa Laa, and Po was so strong that the show was rebooted in 2014 by CBeebies, due to the popularity of the original first five seasons that ran from 1997 and 2001.
But the hit show was suddenly marred by heartbreak in 2018, when one of the actors who held the role of Tinky Winky in the first run of the show tragically died.
READ MORE: Dark side of The Wiggles with group dogged by rows, walk-outs and divorce
Simon Shelton Barnes had just moved to the Wirral, nearly 200 miles away from his previous home in Bedfordshire, looking for a fresh start.
But within weeks, he was found dead on a street in Liverpool. The trained dancer and choreographer reportedly had struggles with alcohol and had hoped that this big move to the other side of the country would get him away from some of the distractions he had found rife living near London.
Close pal Jane Rees reportedly said that Simon had been struggling living away from his three kids, who were the centre of his life.
And Stephen’s flatmate Judith said at the time about his tragic death, “I’m very floored at losing him, he was just the best company.”
An inquest found that Stephen had died from hypothermia after going on a night out in January 2018.
He was found with a “high concentration of alcohol” and froze to death on the wintery streets on 17 January, with the coroner ruling it was likely a combination of the alcohol in his system and the 3C temperature that had caused him to tragically lose his life aged just 52 years old.
He was discovered “at the Port of Liverpool Building in a well between the building and street,” just after 7 am.
His former Teletubbies co-star, John Summit, paid tribute to him after the heartbreaking news broke, with the actor who played Dipsy writing on social media, “What a week! RIP Simon Shelton aka Tinky Winky: remembering the many good times. Rest easy.”
TV stars Emily Atak and Robert Dawes were family members of Stephen’s – who had a “medical history of alcohol dependence” and both of them made devastating tributes to the actor after his death.
Robert said, “It’s been a very tough week and we are all trying to look after the family as best we can.”
Emily movingly paid tribute to her “wonderful uncle” by saying he was “the kindest and most talented man you could ever wish to meet,” adding that he was “loved by all who knew him, and will be forever”.
Simon previously said about his major role as Tinky Winky, “We used to receive a lot of fan mail from kind and parents, I suppose we were a bit like The Beatles or Take That of children’s television.”
Tinky Winky’s orientation was also a question levied at Simon over the years. “People always ask me if Tinky Winky is gay,” he said. “But the character is supposed to be a three-year-old so the question is really quite silly.”