On the 26th January 2026 we lost Rye resident Crick Hooper. Kim Zanes shares recollections of her friend with us.
Working in the world of photography in London with the likes of David Bailey, Terence Donovan and Brian Duffy is what I believe gave her a true artist’s eye. A competent sailor, yachting in French waters for years with her beloved husband Peter, gave her the ability to know the right place for everything in the home.
Coming back to the UK, they first lived in Dorset, then Winchelsea, and lastly moved to Rye. With a gentle yet naughty sense of humour, Crick lit up every room she entered and everyone who knew her only had good words to share. With a very well-hidden Liverpool accent and family roots in Yorkshire, Crick was a compassionate force of nature. We have simply lost her too soon.
As a young woman living in Liverpool, she clubbed with the best, at venues like The Cavern where she danced to The Beatles, Gerry and the Pacemakers, The Rolling Stones and Cilla Black. Latterly, she instigated the very popular Dog Show at the Winchelsea Annual Fête and raised local funds.
She was a gifted and insightful dog instructor, who not only trained your dog, but you too. As a qualified behaviourist, she could tell you why they were doing what they were doing, which as she always said, was half the battle. And I do mean dog and owner alike. Crick had Irish Wolfhounds to Australian Labradoodles, each one in her life like her shadow, each one well behaved and immaculately groomed. A feat to uphold when she loved her dogs to be their natural beasts, especially out on a muddy walk.
Art exhibitions were a joy to experience together because of her extensive knowledge, which she generously shared. One particular walk around Great Dixter was so educational and left me awestruck with her expertise; until she eventually fessed up that she was actually quoting her close friend, Sally Rhodda, the chair of the Winchelsea Garden Society. We spent the rest of our time helplessly giggling at how well she had fooled me. Laughter was the bedrock of our friendship.
If you believe in that sort of thing, and most importantly Crick did, she is now with her beloved soulmate Peter, his passing a couple of years ago simply broke her heart. And now it is my turn, as I feel truly bereft without her.
Image Credits: Brenda Courtney , Kim Zanes .