Celebrated British author Jilly Cooper, famed for her witty and risqué depictions of love, class, and scandal, has died at the age of 88 on Monday.
UK media reported that the best-selling author whose Rutshire Chronicles series defined an era of romantic fiction died after a fall on Sunday.
Cooper’s publicist, Felicity Blunt, paid a heartfelt tribute, saying:
“I have lost a friend, an ally, a confidante and a mentor. But I know she will live forever in the words she put on the page and on the screen.”
Her children, Felix and Emily, described their mother’s passing as a devastating shock:
“We are so proud of everything she achieved in her life and can’t begin to imagine life without her infectious smile and laughter all around us.”
Born Jill Sallitt on February 21, 1937, Cooper became one of Britain’s most popular authors, earning both praise and notoriety for her unapologetically racy novels filled with sex, snobbery, and humour. Her works, with cheeky titles like “Mount!”, “Score!”, and “Tackle!”, sold over 11 million copies in the UK alone.
A new generation of fans discovered her storytelling through Disney+’s 2024 adaptation of Rivals, which reintroduced her dashing antihero Rupert Campbell-Black reportedly inspired by Andrew Parker Bowles, the former husband of Queen Camilla.
Blunt described Cooper’s writing as timeless:
“She wrote with acuity and insight about all things class, sex, marriage, rivalry, grief and fertility. You wouldn’t expect books categorised as bonkbusters to have so emphatically stood the test of time.”
Jilly Cooper’s bold voice, infectious wit, and fearless approach to storytelling cemented her legacy as one of Britain’s most distinctive literary figures — one who turned scandal into art and romance into cultural history.
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