TRIBUTES POUR IN FOR 'PIONEERING' DAME ANITA

Dame Anita (64) was taken hospital on Sunday after complaining of a headache. Her husband, Gordon, and daughters Sam and Justine, were at her bedside when she died in the hospital's intensive care unit.

She lived in Slindon, near Arundel, was born in Littlehampton and opened her first Body Shop store in Kensington Gardens in Brighton in 1976.

That first branch mushroomed into a multi-national giant campaigning against animal testing, with 2,100 stores spread across 55 countries around the world. Its base is still in Littlehampton where it is the town's biggest employer.

Dame Anita stepped down as chief executive of the company in 1998 and the business was later sold to Loreal.

In February this year, she revealed she was carrying the hepatitis C virus contracted in the 1970s when one of her daughters was born. Typically, she called for hepatitis C to be taken more seriously as a public health challenge.

Tributes were led by Prime Minister Gordon Brown who said Anita Roddick was 'one of the country's true pioneers'. He added: "She campaigned for green issues for many years before it became fashionable to do so and inspired millions to the cause by bringing sustainable products to a mass market. She will be remembered not only as a great campaigner but also as a great entrepreneur."

Bognor Regis and Littlehampton MP Nick Gibb, said: "Anita Roddick made an amazing contribution to Littlehampton, providing employment and prestige to the town in having the headquarters of a world-class company based here."

For full story see West Sussex Gazette September 12