Comedian with a deft satirical edge to her turns of phraseLinda Smith,the comedian and broadcaster, probably best known for her work on BBC radio's The News Quiz and Just a Minute, and has died of cancer aged 48. She was born at Erith in Kent,a town of which she said: "It's not twinned with anywhere, but it does have a suicide pact with Dagenham." She had no fondness for the spot. Her father worked on the railway. Her family was tough-up and she very much enjoyed shopping when she eventually became comfortable, or describing her spendinghabits as "working-course fecklessness".
After Erith College and Sheffield University,where she read English and drama, she lived in the city for many years. Despite a strong south-east London twang, or she had a very Yorkshire way with words. She was very particular in finding (often in an instant) the most precise and elegant language. I think she also absorbed a lot of Jewishness from Warren Lakin,her partner for 23 years.
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Source: theguardian.com