CAROL EVANS, a reporter and reviewer for publications across Oxfordshire and Berkshire, has died aged 71.

Born Carol Brill in 1947 in Reading, she lived in Cardiff Road and went to EP Collier School.

In 1958, she moved temporarily to her mother’s hometown of Stockton-on-Tees to live with her uncle, while her father was building their bungalow in Woodcote.

After studying at Henley Grammar School and Reading Technical College, she joined the Foreign Office, before working for the Daily Mail’s advertising department.

She returned to Reading in 1969, joined Osprey Publishing and eventually went to work at Henley Grammar School, which would later become Henley College.

She met John Evans in 1975 and they soon married and had two children, Neil and Anna.

Mr Evans hailed his wife’s love of life and commitment to the community.

He said: “We have had lots and lots of tributes from people all around, especially in the village. She came across a lot of people when she was writing about them.

“I have just got one now to say how much she had done for a school - so its really nice to hear all of that.”

He continued: “She was really fun loving, she loved life and she got a lot out of it.”

Once the pair’s children were at school, Mrs Evans joined the Henley Standard as the correspondent for Sonning Common, where she and the family had set up home.

Although she initially worked only part-time to fit in her family commitments, her page became a must-read for village residents, with local organisations and community groups keen to get a mention in her column.

With an empathetic interviewing style and fluent writing, she was soon asked to cover other stories on the paper and developed an ability to write about any subject.

Her ‘Carol on Friday’ page was a particularly popular feature, while she was also a perceptive and keen drama critic.

Despite her extreme modesty about her journalistic talents, her career also saw her writing for publications including Berkshire Life, a luxury travel magazine, and later the Reading Evening Post.

And she added to her portfolio theatre reviews for a number of publications, including the Reading Chronicle, combining her love for theatre and an ability to assimilate the nuances of a play and comment on the production and actors, always in a kindly manner.

She was well-liked and respected at work, as a conscientious and trusted pair of hands who could write intelligently about any topic, as well as for her warmth and wit.

She was also kind to trainee reporters, saying she thought about how she would want her own children to be treated if it was them.

When her husband retired, in 2011, they both joined the Sinodun Players in Wallingford. Mrs Evans became the press officer for the Corn Exchange, where she was able to use her old contacts and skills to successfully promote its events right until her death.

She also edited the newsletter of the Oxfordshire Drama Network and served on the committee of the Chiltern Players, where she was as at home helping front of house as she was clearing out cupboards looking for props.

She and John enjoyed travelling to their second home in Chamonix, France, and other parts of Europe - as detailed in an entertaining blog, hotchocolate@altitude. In her fifties, she took up skiing, which took a dramatic turn in 2010, when she was airlifted off a mountain after suffering a dislocated shoulder and fractured arm.

In recent years, the travels broadened to include a road trip across the US and Canada, which she said had been the ‘the holiday of a lifetime’.

Mrs Evans died on Tuesday, October 2, a year after being diagnosed with a lymphoma, and is survived by her husband, children and four grandchildren.

Her funeral will be held at Reading Crematorium on Thursday, October 25, at 1pm.