Following the sad announcement of Lidia's passing, the HLTC social tennis whatsapp group posted these messages:

RIP Lidia Dinham. So very sad to hear of Lidia's passing. She fought her illness with great courage. A feisty and spirited lady who will be sadly missed. My thoughts and prayers are with her family.

She was a real character who will be sadly missed.

So sorry to hear about Lidia. She surely will not be keeping quiet upstairs!

Condolences to her family.

Indeed, spirited is a great word to describe Lidia. So admirable to play in all weathers. She had great sense of humour and some sneaky tennis tactics!

RIP Lidia.

I only met her a couple of times but thought she was remarkably brave and clearly loved her tennis. Thoughts to her family and friends.

Such sad news, she will be so very missed. Thursday nights will be much quieter without her.

Such a warm welcome for new members too. I hope we can pass on such lovely messages to her family.

Had a great game with her just a few weeks ago. She had great spirit, and will be much missed.

Met Lidia for the first time several months ago and she explained her illness after the game. Lidia was an inspiration and fought for every point. RIP Lidia.

In complete shock - only saw her a few weeks ago.

Lidia was the first person I met when I joined the club last year and her warm welcome is what kept me coming back. She will be so very missed!

That's such sad news, she was truly inspirational, full of strength and determination who clearly loved her friends and family very dearly. She'll be massively missed.

I had some great Sunday matches alongside Lidia. Great humour, fun and a willingness to get each ball back! Will be greatly missed.

I knew Lidia from her earlier Elliswick days. Always refreshingly forthright and an excellent competitor. A sad loss.

Very sad news to read. She will be thoroughly missed.

This is very sad news. I had been in touch with her very recently to see how she was and knew she wasn't well, but had expected her to bounce back in the way she had done so many times in the past. Always fun to play with and against and, as everyone has said, one of life's characters who will be missed.

Such sad news. Lidia has been truly courageous, living with the illness for so many years... she refused to give up, she continued playing tennis, she continued to have time for others. Such a big and warm character... she will be missed.

Very sorry to hear this news. Lidia was a real character and quite some fighter. She will be missed.

I just want to reiterate what you all have said. Such a fighter and a character. RIP Lidia.

Very sad news about Lidia. I had just recently been in contact with her about getting together. She fought her illness with such bravery and courage and carried on playing tennis throughout. That is a real testament to her character. I will miss her. My prayers and thoughts are with her family.

Really very sad news. Lidia was always friendly and it was clear she was a fighter. May her soul rest in peace. She will be missed.

Please pass on my condolences to her family. Lidia was such a character and will be missed by all of us.

Such sad news. I hadn't seen Lidia for ages but she got in touch with me a few weeks ago out of the blue, to update me on her family. I thought I'd share the following extract from one of [her] texts which sums up her spirit and determination: "As for me, I've accepted my fate but will be damned if give in easily to cancer. I take mild painkillers and play tennis although with some discomfort. Playing makes me happy so my endorphins are high, consequently this helps my immune system. You should know by now that I'll go down fighting".

A colourful character and perhaps the biggest supporter of social tennis at our club. I remember when Thursday nights were rubbish and 6/7 people used to turn up, Lidia was always one of them - a very warm and sociable person.

Wow. Echo everyone's sentiments. Had the absolute pleasure of meeting her and playing together only a few months ago. Ferocious forehand, and competitive to the end.

A colourful character indeed. Her friendly, feisty, strong character will be missed by many. I would reiterate all the lovely things people have said plus I also often remarked on her many colourful, coordinated tennis outfits.

Lovely lady, always good fun to play with and remained cheerful and optimistic throughout her illness. Also she had a fantastic sense of humour. Thoughts and condolences to her family and friends.

Extremely saddened to read this news, and echo the many messages about her endless optimism and spirit. She will be undoubtedly be missed.

Very very sad to hear. She was such a lovely, courageous lady!

Very sad to hear. She was so strong and positive on the court. God bless her soul. RIP.

Very sad news. Lidia was encouraging and supportive to me when I started playing again after a 20 year break. She will clearly be missed by all.

A great supporter and embodiment of social tennis who didn't like cliques. Always very welcoming to new members. RIP Lidia.

Very sad news indeed. Formidable but kind to the end. Thoughts with her family.

A lovely lady who will be greatly missed. RIP Lidia.

I was totally shocked when I read the email this morning. She was a true fighter, all our thoughts are with her family. RIP Lidia.

A lovely lady who will be missed greatly. RIP Lidia.

So sad to hear this news. I last played with her around 6 weeks ago. What a hoot, feisty and funny. She was giving her full two fingers up to Cancer. What an honour to have known her just a little bit on the court where she was clearly very happy. RIP Lidia.

Sugarlumps!!! Her favourite profanity. What a feisty and funny woman whom I had the pleasure of pairing with many a time, whose attitude and outlook on such a cruel disease always amazed me, and she was always tougher than her toughest day.

I echo the above comments. So much love for Lidia.

‘Sugarlumps’ - I loved that one! Along with ‘give it some wellie!’.

I didn't have the opportunity to play with Lidia. But sounds like an amazing lady. Playing with cancer. Wow. Just wow. I can't play now and I'm healthy! May she rest in peace.

Very sad catching up with this. I only met her once and we played a few weeks ago. It's a shock reading this news because she was so full of spirit so recently, and was a heap of fun on court. My sincere condolences to her family.

Really very sad news. Lidia was always friendly and it was clear she was a fighter.  May her soul rest in peace. She will be missed.

Finally - from me:

I shall miss her a lot. So very, very brave throughout her illness. Always said it ‘how it was’, often somewhat loudly! And just loved our game. It's very sad and I can't believe I won't be seeing her on court again. Well played, and well lived, Lidia.

(Collated by Margaret Shepperd 6/4/22)