Friends for 40 years. I was Marilyn’s first friend at Warwick by virtue of the fact that we were in digs together in Kenilworth. Her mum, dad and I were chatting and quickly discovered we had a Northern Ireland connection as Marie’s Mother’s cousin, Mrs Kyle, lived across the River Camoan from my aunt and my brother was a good childhood friend of Alan Kyle. I think this reassured Marilyn’s mum and dad and I know it definitely reassured my mum! We spent the next 3 years living together, in digs, on campus after that first Christmas (because really our digs were awful!), then in Tocil flats in our second year and in a house in our third year in the depths of Coventry very near the football ground , a house where Marilyn and I both encountered silverfish for the first time in the shower, much to our disgust! We just hit it off from the word go and soon became fast friends. That is why we lived together for 3 years with never a cross word. Marilyn did Sociology and I did English Literature so we met lots of people and had a large group of friends. We were not however joined at the hip and that first term, Marilyn kept telling me I had to meet a new friend of hers called Trevor. Well, eventually I did and we have now been married for 35 years, so thank you Marilyn! Marilyn also helped me get over my extreme homesickness in the first term and I am so glad I did not transfer to Queen Uni in Belfast because Marilyn, Trevor and I made some lifelong friends at Warwick. In that second term, as I have said, we moved onto campus and I regret to tell you all that our minds were much more focused on having fun than on our studies but we must have done something right because we passed the exams at the end of the year. I introduced Marilyn to the tripe stall in Coventry market, explained what tripe was and told her I had eaten it all my life. I think she went off me a bit at this point! We explored the area together – Kenilworth Castle, Warwick and Stratford. Before exams in the second year we went camping in the Brecon Beacons, camped in a field without permission and once in the tent, after the pub, were chased out by angry cows. Trevor bravely rescued Marilyn and went back to help her over the gate which I had previously vaulted in my terror. We spent the rest of the night uncomfortably in the car and the rest of the trip in a safe campsite. But I digress because after our first year at uni we both worked and saved for our Interrailing trip. Before we went we joined the YHA and practiced putting up our little blue tent in Marie’s parents’ garden with lots of help and some exasperation from Marie’s dad. He made us do it at least 3 times so we got it right and we made lots of holes in his lawn. We set off for the month long trip. It was 1972. We went to Holland, Belgium, Germany, Switzerland, Italy, France and Spain. Marilyn was a boarding school girl and I was from Bellaghy and we had the time of our lives and came home safe although how we did this amazes me even now! The tales I could tell! But my lips are sealed! Seriously though, we came back the nice girls we always were because we were lucky and had God on our side. Our trip ended in Spain. We had met a girl somewhere who told us Salou was a lovely place so we went there after Madrid. It is like a small version of Benidorm! Anyway we ate churros and drank red wine and went, on our last night, running out of money anyway, to a restaurant and ordering paella. Marilyn could not eat it because of all the tentacles she could see. I offered to remove them so she could at least eat the rice but to no avail! So it was back the UK. Marie and I just slept and ate her mother’s wonderful food and then I went home after 2 days R n R. Marie’s parents were always so kind to me. Years went by. Ben and Marie moved to London. We all had our wonderful children. There were lots of occasions where we got together with our lovely friends like Phil and Kay who sadly for us all are in New Zealand and cannot be here today and all our other Warwick friends.. We and the children had loads of fun at get togethers and holiday times. We were mutual godparents. When my Katie got married I was so happy Marie made it to the wedding service in the church. She told me she had transfusions overnight so she could go to the service. I just waved and waved to her as we came down the aisle after the register signing. Marilyn was not well enough to dance at my daughter’s wedding but she enjoyed it as much as I did. She also came to Katie’s daughter’s christening and we had a lovely day. Even when we met for a visit in the hospital or the hospice we had a lovely day, lots of chat and enjoyment of each other’s company. The Ashton family will always love and cherish Marilyn. She was so sweet, kind, loving and giving and had so much empathy. Marilyn will always be in our hearts. Trevor and I are so proud to have been her friends.