Author Sue Townsend Dies, Aged 68

Sue Townsend, the famed author of the Adrian Mole book series, passed away following a short illness

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Sue Townsend dead
Sue Townsend dead
(Image credit: Rex)

Sue Townsend, the famed author of the Adrian Mole book series, passed away following a short illness

Sue Townsend died in her home on Thursday following a short illness. She was 68 years old.

The British novelist was best known for her Adrian Mole children's series. The first book, The Secret Diary of Adrian Mole, aged 13 3/4, was published in 1982.

The novelist had had several health issues over the years, including battling diabetes, blindness and a stroke in 2012.

Several celebrities have come forward to pay tribute to Townsend, including comedian and writer Danny Wallace. 'If ever I saw that she was in a town close to me - and I'd never been to book readings or book signings before - but I always made sure I went to hers,' he told BBC.

'She was incredibly sweet to her younger fans and I've got all these books at home that she had signed and she would say, 'To Daniel, from Sue Townsend aged 43 and three quarters' or '45 and a half'. So she really understood what people loved about Adrian Mole I think.'

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Ali Gray
Ali Gray is an award-winning content director and digital strategist. Most recently she was the Director of Branded Content at Hearst, and helped to bridge the gap between the editorial and commercial worlds working across all Hearst brands, including ELLE, Cosmopolitan, Esquire and Harper's Bazaar. Prior to that she worked as an editor contributing to several brands such as The Telegraph, iVillage UK.