Gorden Kaye, the star of the British sitcom ‘Allo ‘Allo!, has died in a British care home aged 75.

Kaye played the put-upon cafe owner Rene Artois on the hit show, which ran for 10 years from 1982.

Artois would often find himself stuck between the German military, which had occupied his French town, and the Allied resistance.

Kaye had minor roles in other British sitcoms including Are You Being Served?, but it was ‘Allo ‘Allo! which gave him his big break.

He also portrayed the French cafe owner on the stage, which included a tour of Australia in 2007.

Kaye first came to prominence as a television actor in Coronation Street in 1969 after making his TV debut in BBC drama Champion House.

He played small roles in films such as The Party’s Over, and also played the Ministry of Information’s lobby porter in the Terry Gilliam dystopian film Brazil in 1985.

Kaye’s last on-screen role was as the farmer in comedy TV series Revolver.

Kaye suffered serious head injuries in a car accident in 1990 during the Burns’ Day storm, saying afterwards that he could not remember any details of the incident.

In his memoirs, ‘Allo ‘Allo! creator Jeremy Lloyd — who visited Kaye in hospital — wrote: “I believe part of his recovery was due to his agent getting a video and showing reruns of ‘Allo ‘Allo! to remind him who he was”.

Kaye was photographed and interviewed by a Sunday Sport journalist — posing as medical staff — during his recovery in hospital from emergency brain surgery following the accident.

He sued the Sunday Sport but the UK Court of Appeal held there was no remedy in English law for an invasion of privacy.