Although I've known the sad news since Saturday it has taken me until today to feel that I can say something about the loss of Rosie. She was a wonderful friend, so full of life and fun, with a wicked sense of humour. We were going to travel down to the Radway re-union together and I still find it hard to accept that she won't be chucking an assortment of instruments into the back of my car and talking non-stop about anything and everything for the whole journey.

She had gone through so much in this last year, with her wrist operation to enable her to play the melodeon properly again; then the two knee operations. The move to Newcastle had worked well and she was looking forward to being re-united with Chris when he moved up later in the year. My heart goes out to Chris, and to all her family, particularly Harriet and Ellie, her daughters.

She was a great player who appreciated melody and beauty in a good tune, wherever it came from - she championed a number of 'Irish' tunes, played in an 'English' style, slower and sensitively, and could be moved to tears by a particularly beautiful rendering of a tune. I hope that many recordings of her playing and singing exist.

Goodbye Rosie. I shall really miss you.

Susan B