DIANA MELLY, aged 87
She met a series of husbands in nightclubs before marrying a famous jazz singer and becoming his manager and helper. It was a very unconventional marriage.
BRIAN SHERRIFF, aged 94
A designer of women’s underwear, he became a beekeeper after going bust and designed a revolutionary suit to protect people from bee stings.
DAPHNE SELFE, aged 97
A model and actress, she retired when she married. In her seventies she made a comeback and became an international sensation – the oldest model in the world.
CLAUDE JAMES, aged 90
Arriving in Britain as part of the Windrush generation, Claude spent his working life with British Rail. He threw himself into many good causes, fought against injustice and was highly respected in his local community.
PAT HUME, aged 83
An unsung hero of the Northern Ireland Peace Process, Pat Hume, wife of SDLP politician John Hume made a largely unrecognised contribution to ending the Troubles in Northern Ireland. She was the consumate politician’s wife, whilst bringing up her family.
LAWRENCE GOODMAN, aged 100
Lawrence ‘Benny’ Goodman is the last surviving British Dambuster pilot from the Second World War. He had a number of close shaves in the war and ended up as part of the Squadron 617, which unleashed Barnes Wallis’ bouncing bomb on German targets, with the intention of bringing the war to an end. He was highly decorated.
PAM HARRIS, aged 88
Landlady at the famous Dirty Duck pub in Stratford, she was host for many actors of stage and screen and became a personality in her own right. Fierce but fair, she stood up to the Hell’s Angels, imposing pub rules on all of her clients.
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