The actor was best known for playing Barry Stuart-Hargreaves in the BBC comedy.
A statement from his friend and agent Sharry Clark said: “The much loved actor Barry Howard, best known for his exquisitely supercilious Barry Stuart-Hargreaves, the champion ballroom dancer in BBC’s hugely popular Hi-de-Hi, passed away today aged 78.”
Howard had been suffering from blood cancer and had been ill for some time, Clark said.
The actor starred as the camp dance instructor in the summer camp sitcom Hi-de-Hi from 1980 to 1986.
He later had a guest role as Oliver Barnes in the Doctor Who Christmas special in 2009.
