Senior politicians pay tribute to Tory supporter and countryside campaigner Jilly Cooper

Prime ministers past and present have led tributes to Dame Jilly Cooper, a lifelong Conservative and champion of the countryside.

The 88-year-old author died on Sunday morning following a fall. Asked for Sir Keir Starmer's response to her death, a Downing Street spokesperson said: "The prime minister sends his condolences to her family." But her biggest fan among senior politicians was Rishi Sunak, who admitted two years ago when he was PM that he was a fan of her racy novels.

"Sad to hear of the passing of Dame Jilly Cooper, a storyteller whose wit and love or character brought joy to millions," he wrote on X. "My thoughts are with her family and fellow readers." In an interview in May 2023, Mr Sunak ranked her classic Rivals as one of his all-time favourite novels.

That prompted a question in a TV interview about whether he was "really into" her books. "Yes, that is true," he said, blushing.

"Riders, Rivals, Polo, The Man Who Made Husbands Jealous, Appassionata," he said. "She's done a lot of different books, but that's the set of books that I like." Read more from Sky News:French PM quits less than 24 hours after forming cabinetEx-England rugby captain has motor neurone disease Besides being a Conservative Party supporter, Cooper campaigned with the Trust for Nature Conservation for the preservation of limestone grasslands in Gloucestershire.

And at the Tory conference in Manchester, shadow environment secretary Victoria Atkins paid tribute to her campaigning for the countryside. "I never had the chance to meet her, but - my goodness me - did she bring joy and fun and a little bit of raciness to our lives," she said.

"Anyone who saw her, anyone who's read her books, she was absolutely about giving fun and joy to her readers. "But also she was absolutely grounded in the countryside.

She's one of the people, if I had a sort of celebrity dinner, she'd be on my invitation list.".