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Diana Kennedy managed the luxury bed and breakfast with her daughters Sheena, Jo and Kate since 1984. During that time it became a very successful business and has a five-star rating on TripAdvisor.
When the business announced the death of Mrs Kennedy on its Facebook page, many commented praising her warmth and hospitality.
Mrs Kennedy was born on September 29 1936 in Southport, but after the war moved to Madras in India. She had happy memories of her time at the Convent she attended in Ooty.
When her family returned to England she went to Lowther College boarding school in North Wales and made friends she stayed in touch with all her life. Her early experiences of travelling continued when she worked as an au pair in Toulon, France, and took up the then-new and glamorous job of being an air hostess for BOAC.
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She met her husband Pat, a decorated RAF pilot and war veteran, on holiday in Waterville, Ireland. They married in 1958, and Mrs Kennedy sharpened her hostess skills while living with her husband in Germany. This would prove useful nearly thirty years later when they decided to buy a hotel.
In 1984 Mr Kennedy retired and the couple bought Lindeth Fell. Sheena Kennedy said: “Pat was completely confident that Diana’s hotel and catering course some thirty years before would make up for the fact that neither of them had any training or experience in the hospitality industry.
“His confidence in her was well placed and she rose to the challenge amazingly, in the early days doing all the cooking herself.”
Her famous brown sugar meringues remain on the menu to this day, and last year Mrs Kennedy won a gold medal for her marmalade.
She was generous to her staff, she made birthday cakes, took them to dental appointments, and even once took them to The Wheelhouse club.
“Mum was kind and cared about people, she was a brilliant cook and a hugely successful hotel owner. She was interested and interesting, she was cheerful and comforting, had a great sense of humour and a sense of adventure.” The information for this article was taken from Juliet’s tribute which she will read out at her funeral on Tuesday 18 October.
