It can sometimes be tempting to ‘sanctify’ lost loved ones, but that would be a disservice to my Mum. Like all of us, she was a fully rounded and complicated human being of light and dark – she could be cutting and silly, tough and weepy, strong and vulnerable, earnest and funny, fierce and tender, tricksy and simple. She could drink, smoke and argue anyone under the table. She could also be quite bonkers. She brought a large wicker chair as a gift for me – on the coach from Glasgow to London (God knows how) and once sent me a haggis through the post which eventually arrived as a strange, lumpy pancake after being squashed through the letterbox by the postie. I love that wicker chair, which is now painted bright pink and sits in my living room – reminding me of her epic and heroic journey.

Ann had a passionate belief in equality, a big, generous and forgiving heart, a razor sharp mind and an ability to laugh at most things life threw her way (however inappropriate!) and if she loved you, you were hers forever – her friendships were central to her life. My Mum was a woman who wore many hats, (both figuratively and literally) she was a journalist, a chef, a theatre manager, a teacher and a committed union activist. She was a warrior, a feminist and a single mother when that was a very hard thing to be – in the words of an old friend she was a ‘proper badass’. Our relationship was never an easy one but we could still make each other giggle and she was always my first call in a crisis – as Mums often are. We lived at opposite ends of the country (both geographically and emotionally at times!) but she was and will continue to be a giant presence in my life, much missed but always with me.