Beloved author and longtime Forest Green Rovers fan Dame Jilly Cooper has died at the age of 88.
“Jilly was a wonderfully kind and caring person who made you feel so cared for when you were around her,” commented Richard Joyce, former FGR press officer.
“Personally for me, when my time at Forest Green came to an abrupt end she was a great comfort. She was kind enough to welcome me round to her home for dinner or catch ups, or to chat on the phone about football or my work.”
Joyce worked at FGR for nearly six years, during which time both he and Cooper enjoyed the play-off final at Wembley, where the club gained promotion to the Football League for the first time in their history.
The two shared a friendship after Joyce aided Cooper with book research for her 2023 book ‘Tackle!’ which she told the BBC was based on her many visits to “the most beautiful club in the world”.
“She would make several pages of notes while I spoke through some of my experiences in football – even sketching out a drawing of how everything looked in the manager’s office.
“Her attention to detail was amazing and her energy to keep producing work that’s enjoyed by so many after decades of doing it was inspiring.”
Cooper’s books have recently been adapted into hit television show ‘Rivals’, the second season of which is currently filming and scheduled to come out in 2026.
But despite all her success as a novelist, it is her personal qualities that those who knew her will remember her by.
“She’ll be sadly missed but her incredible warmth and love for everyone will always be remembered.”
