Queen Camilla, Dame Joanna Lumley, and David Tennant were among the notable figures who gathered at London’s Southwark Cathedral for a memorial service honoring the late novelist Dame Jilly Cooper.
Dame Jilly, renowned for her bestselling novels, including “Rivals” and “Riders,” passed away unexpectedly at the age of 88 in October 2025, following injuries sustained from a fall.
Dame Joanna Lumley lauded her as “an extraordinary woman,” reflecting on the service held Friday, noting, “It was very touching, sometimes very funny, just sometimes very moving and very beautiful.”
Other attendees included Dame Jilly’s agent, Felicity Blunt, and her husband, actor Stanley Tucci, alongside Rupert Everett, Clare Balding, former footballer Tony Adams, and comedian Rory Bremner.
The Queen was greeted by the Dean of Southwark, the Very Rev Mark Oakley, outside the cathedral, pausing to view a portrait of the author, known for her affection for animals, displayed with a dog on an easel near the entrance.
During the service, the dean remarked, “Dame Jilly Cooper was a person with a champagne soul, of good vintage and sparkling for all its worth.”
He further added, “Full of light, she lit up places and people, a collage of rare humane qualities, and a friend who brought comfort, compassion, and excitement.”
Stars from the “Rivals” adaptation present included Victoria Smurfit, Alex Hassell, Aidan Turner, Danny Dyer, and Katherine Parkinson.
Dyer described the service afterward as “wonderful.”
Dame Jilly’s most celebrated works were “The Rutshire Chronicles,” commencing with “Riders” in 1985, which explored the scandals, relationships, and social dynamics of affluent, equestrian-enthusiastic communities.
The sequel, “Rivals,” released in 1988, gained renewed popularity in 2024 when it was adapted into a successful Disney+ TV series. Queen Camilla visited the cast and crew during the filming of the show’s second season last month.
According to the order of service, “Rivals” actors Alex Hassell and Bella Maclean read an excerpt from the novel, while Dame Joanna Lumley recited a passage from the diary anthology “The Common Years.”
Dame Jilly sold over 11 million books in the UK alone.
Blunt, who had previously described the author as “emotionally intelligent, fantastically generous, sharply observant, and utter fun,” carried a tote bag emblazoned with “I love Jilly Cooper.”
Broadcaster Gyles Brandreth also paid tribute to the “fabulous” and “amazing” Dame Jilly, encapsulating her essence in one word: “fun, fun, fun, fun.”
“Champagne is being popped in heaven today, and I’m honored and delighted to be here amongst so many celebrating an amazing writer,” he added.
Smurfit expressed that she was “extremely grateful and unbelievably lucky” to have known Dame Jilly for nearly 40 years.
“We will keep her memory and stories alive for as long as we can,” she affirmed.
Actor Sir Derek Jacobi described Dame Jilly as a “glorious lady” and noted that it meant a “great deal to be here, just to say a final ‘hello’.”
Additional guests at the service included Queen Camilla’s former husband, Andrew Parker Bowles, and their children, Tom Parker Bowles and Laura Lopes, broadcaster Clare Balding, and presenter Richard Madeley.
Dame Jilly was appointed a CBE for her contributions to literature and charity in 2018 and was made a dame in 2024, later describing receiving the honor from the King as “orgasmic.”
She is survived by her two children, Felix and Emily, who previously described her as “the shining light in all of our lives.”
“We are so proud of everything she achieved in her life and can’t begin to imagine life without her infectious smile and laughter all around us,” they conveyed in a statement in October.
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