Roots star Olivia Cole has died in Mexico aged 75, a funeral association official said.

Linda Cooper, executive secretary of the association, said Cole died last Friday at her home in San Miguel de Allende, a city in central Mexico, of a heart attack.

Cole received an Emmy Award for her portrayal of Matilda, the wife of Ben Vereen’s Chicken George in the ABC smash hit 1977 miniseries.

It was based on African-American writer Alex Haley’s book Roots, which dramatised his ancestors’ lives.

Memphis-born Cole’s other screen credits included the Oprah Winfrey-produced miniseries The Women of Brewster Place and L.A. Law.