Nothing I can say can help alleviate the pain for a family who has lost a loved one, but I wanted to share my own recollections of Marilyn in the hope that it contributes to the fitting tributes and memories being shared here.

I have been friends with Olivia, Marilyn's older daughter, since I was about 10 years old, when Olivia and I met singing for a children's recording and discovered we were due to be going to the same secondary school the following September. There began a friendship which remains to this day, and one of the things that stands out in my mind from our school days is that Marilyn's home was one where I always felt welcome. I remember being a regular guest there at weekends, for Olivia's parties and sleepovers. Whether we had disappeared upstairs to giggle and generally be teenage girls, or in the shared spaces eating together with the family, I always felt it was a safe space and a home away from home through all our teenage years. 

Thank you, Marilyn, for creating that space for us. I will always remember and appreciate it.  

With fondness and love to all the family,

Andra x