Biography

They met at a London publisher where he was a director and she was a secretary who was a fan of his work.

After her husband's death in 1965, she became a devoted executor of his literary estate, and refused to co-operate with would-be biographers, in keeping with the poet's last wishes.

She allowed the Andrew Lloyd Webber musical "Cats" to be based on Eliot's whimsical verses. The stage show became a smash hit that brought in huge sums for the Eliot estate, enabling her to create Old Possum's Practical Trust. It has supported numerous arts and literacy charities and institutions, and funded the TS Eliot Prize for Poetry.

She edited many of Eliot's poems for publication, including a much-praised edition of "The Waste Land". She also edited several volumes of letters, giving scholars new insights into the intensely private writer.

Widow of author T.S. Eliot.