Lady Eleanor, who married a knight who was 45 years her senior, passes away

Lady Eleanor, who suffered throughout her life from a muscular disorder, died peacefully in her sleep at the age of 56, according to her death notice. She was buried yesterday.

She was a young doctor when she met Sir Thomas Brown, the former head of the Eastern Health Board in Belfast, on a study tour in Italy.

They met at a concert in St Mark's Square in Venice and Sir Thomas later recalled that as they chatted they realised they had many interests in common.

On return to Northern Ireland Sir Thomas made the romantic gesture of leaving a bunch of primroses tied to Eleanor's front door accompanied by an unsigned note.

Their friendship developed and in 1988 they married, he at the age of 72 and she at 27, and went to live at his home, Westgate in Portaferry.

Sir Thomas died in 2003 and Lady Eleanor was later to recall fond memories of their 15-year marriage. "I think I learned to be a diplomat," she said, adding that Sir Thomas, who had been a solicitor, learned to cook after getting married and she particularly remembered his chicken curry dishes.

The couple loved travelling, going as far as Uzbekistan on their trips through Europe and Asia.

William Odling-Smee, a former surgeon at the Royal Victoria and Mater Hospitals in Belfast, said Lady Eleanor's disability, which she had from birth, had limited her medical career.

She was originally his houseman when training and later worked in haematology. After her marriage she became a community paediatrician in the Children's Centre at the new Downe Hospital in Downpatrick.

She recalled that her love of medicine was partly because her mother had been a nurse but also because, as a child, she had spent quite long periods in hospital and loved reciting long medical terms.

Mr Odling-Smee, who as a non-stipendiary Church of Ireland minister, officiated at Sir Thomas and Lady Eleanor's marriage and also at Sir Thomas's funeral, said Lady Eleanor did not let her disability hinder her work with many charities.

"It was absolutely wonderful that she was able to do so much in spite of this fairly severe disability," he said.

Among the charities she was involved with was Muscular Dystrophy, the NI Medical Legal Society, and the Ulster Arts Historical Society.

Another organisation close to her heart was the Exploris Aquarium in Portaferry, which was threatened with closure at one stage when the local council expressed concerns about its running cost. She was one of the leaders of a campaign to ensure the aquarium remained open, reminding councillors it was an important part of the local tourism jigsaw bringing in 100,000 visitors a year to the area.

She was also a member of the Belfast Civic Trust, which presses for the retention of the city's Victorian and Edwardian architecture and organises walking and bus tours around Belfast's built heritage.

Other interests included the Ulster Orchestra and Opera NI.

Mr Odling-Smee said that after her husband's death Lady Eleanor came back to live in Belfast's Malone area, where she was strongly involved with the Church of St John the Evangelist, where her funeral took place yesterday. She was later buried at Ballymanish Cemetery in Portaferry.

She is survived by her mother Joan Thompson and sisters Carrie and Jackie.