Key points:
- Cook starred in multiple Australian TV dramas including The Flying Doctors
- She also spent a number of years as a presenter on The Great Outdoors
- She died 'peacefully' surrounded by family on Wednesday night
In a statement released via her management company, Cook's family said she died of cancer on Wednesday night.
In the statement, Cook's family said their "beloved partner, mother, daughter, sister and dear friend" died peacefully.
Cook, a two-time Logie Award winner, first appeared on Australian TV screens in the soap series The Restless Years.
But she became best known for her role in A Country Practice as veterinarian Vicky Dean from 1981 to 1985, a role which made her a fixture in Australian loungerooms.
Her character's marriage to Simon Bowen, played by Grant Dodwell, in 1983 was one of the most significant plotlines of the show.
Last year, Cook revealed that fans still called her Vicky.
"It's a badge of honour," she told the website Starts at 60.
"I can't understand how on Earth they'd recognise me because I look far different, but the voice is the same," she said.
"It is fun when they come up and say how much they loved the show, because we loved it too."
Loading...While the role in A Country Practice made her a household name, Cook later revealed that it left her burnt-out and on the verge of quitting acting, according to News Limited.
However, she persevered and went on to appear on a number of Australian soap operas and dramas, including E Street, Young Lions, Neighbours and All Saints.
After a career break, she went on to appear in the ABC medical drama Pulse, which premiered in 2017.
She told the Daily Telegraph that some of her younger colleagues had watched her as children.
"They were very sweet about meeting Vicky the Vet," she said.
Cook helped persuade psychiatrist and philanthropist Rodney Seaborn to buy the Stables Theatre in Sydney's Kings Cross in 1986, saving the Griffin Theatre Company.
One of Cook's final performances was in the Griffin production of The Almighty Sometimes in September.
On social media, Australians shared their memories of watching Cook over the years.
"I never missed an episode of A Country Practice," said Glenda McDonald on Facebook.
"RIP Penny, you will be sadly missed."
"Thank you for the memories you gave us all over the years," Luci Sartori posted on Facebook.
Sarah Fereday Nading said Cook was her favourite actor on A Country Practice.
"When I first came to Australia, I watched this show to familiarise myself with all things Australian," she said.
Another user, Karina Hermione, said she once met Cook as a child.
"She came to Shopfront Youth Theatre and signed autographs to help up raise money," she said
"You couldn't meet a nicer person."
In a statement, the family thanked those who had sent messages of condolence.
The family requested donations be made to the Sydney-based Monkey Baa Theatre Company for Young People, where she was chair of the board, and the Chris O'Brien Lifehouse in lieu of flowers or gifts.
A private cremation will be held for the actor, with a celebration of her life to be announced at a later date.