Marchioness campaigner Dallaglio dies

(PA)

Eileen Dallaglio, the campaigning mother of the former England rugby union captain, Lawrence Dallaglio, has died of cancer, aged 70. In rugby circles she was famous for turning up to every England match in her bright red St George’s outfits, while politicians came to know and fear her as a campaigner for families bereaved by major disasters.

Her 19-year-old daughter Francesca was the youngest of 51 party-goers drowned after the Marchioness pleasure boat was hit by a 2,000-ton dredger on the Thames in August 1989. Mrs Dallaglio set up the Marchioness Action Group to campaign for a public inquiry into how it had happened and legal action against the dredger’s owners. She also founded Disaster Action, to support families bereaved in other disasters, including the Ladbroke rail crash in 1999.

Lawrence Dallaglio said: “My mother was the cornerstone of my life. She showed a courage and determination that both humbled and inspired me.”