A woman who made her name in countless shows across West Yorkshire has died.

Diane Robinson (née Bradley), passed away in the early hours of Monday, March 10 after a long illness. She was 59 and had lived in Greetland for 25 years..

She was born in Halifax, the daughter of Constance and the late Dennis Bradley.

From a young age Diane’s love was that of her horses, which she continued to enjoy up until early 2014. She entered many show competitions in the local area including dressage and show jumping, winning many rosettes throughout her life.

She trained as a teacher at the Elizabeth Gaskell College in Manchester and consequently taught at Deighton High School, Westborough High and finally Sowerby Bridge High School. She was a highly regarded teacher and enjoyed teaching her pupils. Her culinary expertise did not end at work as Diane enjoyed creating culinary masterpieces at home, hosting many dinner parties.

Horses and cookery aside, Diane enjoyed a long amateur career with various Operatic Societies taking many leading roles and becoming a well-respected figure in the Yorkshire operatic scene. Her first performance at the age of 22 was the role of Ottaline in “White Horse Inn”. She succeeded this role by performing in many shows with different societies including Hebden Bridge, Brighouse, Slaithwaite to name just a few.

However, her home society was that of the Halifax Light Opera Society with whom she performed regularly.

Although there are too many performances to mention, Diane took the lead role of Mabel in “Broadway Pirates of Penzance” at the Halifax Civic with the Halifax Catholic Amateurs in 1985. Following this performance, she was invited to perform the same show at the Leeds Grand Theatre with the Leeds Amateurs in March 1987. Diane performed again at the Grand in 1993, taking the role of Sarah Millick in “Bitter Sweet” receiving commendations from local newspapers and audiences for her “superb performance”.

She continued her career in “Barnum” staged at the Alhambra playing the role of Jenny Lind in 1994. Diane was awarded “Best Female Performance” from the National Opera and Dramatic Association for her role in “Anything Goes” with the Halifax Light Opera Society in November 1998. She continued to perform on stage until 2010 with her role of Nettie Fowler in “Carousel” at the Lawrence Batley Theatre, Huddersfield, with the Huddersfield Light Opera Company.

Diane’s love for performing did not end on stage as she continued to perform with Reflections, a singing group with Richard Cook, Gerry Wheatcroft, Norman Mellor and their pianist Geoff Bottomley. Together they performed in various locations and concert platforms with some of the area’s major musical organisations. The group raised thousands of pounds for numerous charities in the local area.

When she wasn’t cooking, singing or riding, early in her life Diane spent her weekends racing with the Royal Yorkshire Yacht Club in Bridlington with her husband Charles whom she married in December 1982.

Diane retired from teaching in 2013 and has spent the past year enjoying her hobbies and spending time with her family.

Diane leaves her husband Charles and two sons, Christopher and Gregory.

The funeral will be held at Halifax Minster, on March 21 at 10.30am followed by private cremation at Parkwood, Elland.