‘She transformed our lives’: Daughter of Downton Abbey’s Anna Chancellor dies tragically aged just 36 following a battle with leukaemia
- Poppy Chancellor, 36, was an illustrator and paper-cut artist
- She had been suffering from acute myeloid leukaemia and passed died on Friday
Downton Abbey and Four Weddings And A Funeral star Anna Chancellor has paid a touching tribute to her daughter who has died following a battle with leukaemia.
Poppy Chancellor, 36, an illustrator and paper-cut artist who had been suffering from acute myeloid leukaemia, passed away alongside her immediate family on Friday.
Anna, together with other relatives, yesterday posted a message on her daughter’s social media in which they paid tribute to ‘an unbelievable life force’.
They also thanked Royal Marsden Hospital staff in London who treated Poppy and sent a message of support to others going through similar ordeals.
They wrote: ‘To all you wonderful and most-loved friends of Poppy. We send you this message with our deepest love.
Downton Abbey and Four Weddings And A Funeral star Anna Chancellor has paid a touching tribute to her daughter who has died following a battle with leukaemia
Poppy Chancellor, 36, an illustrator and paper-cut artist who had been suffering from acute myeloid leukaemia, passed away alongside her immediate family on Friday
‘On September 29 Poppy died, held tight by her immediate family just as she had wished.
‘Despite every effort, her body could not continue any longer. So we, her family and friends who all adore her join the other families who have lost loved ones far too young.
‘Poppy was and is an unbelievable life force of creativity, compassion, wit, beauty and sheer uniqueness. She transformed our lives, and we are beyond grateful.’
Poppy had studied at the esteemed Royal Drawing School and worked for a string of high-profile brands including Cath Kidston and Adidas.
King Charles is rumoured to own one of her works which she gave to him as a thank-you after she attended an artists’ residence at Dumfries House – the Ayrshire-based stately home which he bought for £45 million in 2007.
In May, the Daily Mail revealed Poppy’s brave attitude in the face of the illness, even as she prepared for chemotherapy.
She said: ‘I am terrified and physically exhausted – at the same time as learning to talk to my body and cells with loving defiance.’
London-born Anna Chancellor, 58, played the Dowager Lady Anstruther in ITV drama Downton Abbey. Her representatives were unavailable for comment last night.