Lynsey De Paul death: Songwriter, who was first woman ever to win an Ivor Novello award, dies aged 64

'Although she was small in stature, she was very big in positive personality,' said her agent Michael Joyce

(PA)

Singer-songwriter Lynsey De Paul, who was the first woman ever to win an Ivor Novello award, has died at 64 after a suffering a suspected brain haemorrhage.

"Although she was small in stature, she was very big in positive personality," her agent Michael Joyce told the BBC.

"She was always so positive about everything."

De Paul enjoyed five top 20 UK chart hits, including "Sugar Me" and "Getting a Drag" in 1972, and "Won't Somebody Dance With Me" in 1973, for which she won her first songwriting accolade.

She won a second Ivor Novello in 1974 for her track "No Honestly", which also served as the theme tune to the ITV comedy of the same name.

The theme tune to Esther Rantzen's BBC One series Hearts Of Gold was also written by De Paul.

"She became a huge star but she was also a loyal and generous friend,” Rantzen said. "It's an absolutely tragic loss."

As well as her songwriting successes, De Paul represented the UK in the 1977 Eurovision Song Contest with "Rock Bottom".

Although she never married, she was romantically linked to a number of high profile men in the entertainment industry, including Beatle Ringo Starr, Sean Connery and Dudley Moore.

She did, however, have five offers of marriage, she claimed during an interview with the Daily Mail in 2007. Including from The Animals bassist Chas Chandler and James Coburn.