Dublin born singer Linda Nolan tragically passed away last week, on January 15, after being admitted to a hospital near her home in Blackpool with double pneumonia.
Linda was first diagnosed with breast cancer in 2005 and given the all clear in 2011, But sadly her cancer returned in 2020 and spread to her hip and her brain.
Her condition deteriorated over Christmas and she passed last Wednesday, surrounded by her loved ones, including her sisters with whom she shared a tight-knit bond. This marks the second sibling death for the Nolans, who lost sister Bernie to breast cancer in 2013.
Speaking exclusively to The Mirror, sister Coleen reveals how Linda was in good spirits almost to the end, eating the chocolates people had brought her and talking with her friends and family.
Coleen says: "Although she had double pneumonia and was on oxygen, she was cracking jokes and being her usual funny self."
Before she passed, Linda did also discussed what she wanted for her funeral. Coleen adds: "She wanted everyone in black, wearing mantillas, those little lace veils that cover your face. I remember saying, “You are joking, Linda! If I see all my sisters in mantillas, I’m going to laugh the whole way through the funeral! We’ve decided not to do that, but we are wearing black."
When Linda was first diagnosed 20 years ago, she lost her husband Brian just a few months later. Coleen explains: "He was the love of her life and they hadn’t spent a night apart for 29 years. Then, two months later my mum died, all while Linda was having treatment. I don’t think many people could survive that, but she did.
"For many years, she lived in the house I own in Blackpool on the same street where my sisters live. It’s packed with her belongings – every costume and every bit of memorabilia from over the years, as well as Brian’s ashes."
The Mirror agony aunt also shared a sweet detail about her sister Linda's final resting place, which will be next to Brian.
"My first thought after she died was to put Brian’s ashes with Linda’s," says Coleen, so that’s what we’re doing. In life they were never apart, so I’m glad they’ll be together again."
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Getty Images)And she shared details of Linda’s send off: "Her coffin is pure showbiz – bright pink and sparkly, just as she wanted," Coleen adds. "The one thing my sister loved was bling – her trainers had bling on them, her handbags, her tops, her walking stick – so it feels right that she has a glittery pink coffin."
The Nolan Sisters shot to fame as one of the original girl bands in the early 1970s with songs including I'm In The Mood for Dancing and Chemistry, and have entertained fans across the world for the past 50 years.
Coleen adds: "For the rest of my life, I’ll be toasting Linda with a Malibu and Coke, which was one of her favourite tipples. She used to call it Mabilu and Coke and I can still hear her shouting, “Coleen! Get the Mabilu out!”
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