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Mary Cynthia Burke Roche (19 August 1934 – 3 March 2023) was a British aristocrat, educator, and author. She was the maternal aunt of Diana, Princess of Wales and is known for publishing Call Me Maurice: The Life and Times of Lord Fermoy, 1885–1955, a biography of her father, Maurice Roche, 4th Baron Fermoy, and family history.
Mary Cynthia Roche | |
|---|---|
| Born | 19 August 1934 Peterculter, Aberdeen, Scotland |
| Died | 3 March 2023 (aged 88) London, England |
| Spouses | Denis Geoghan (m. 1973–1980)Michael Gunningham
(m. 1981–1989) |
| Children | 4 |
| Parents | |
Early life and education
editRoche was born on 19 August 1934 in Peterculter, Aberdeen, as the eldest daughter and second child of Maurice Roche, 4th Baron Fermoy and Ruth Roche, Baroness Fermoy.[1][2] She had a brother, Edmund Roche, and a sister, Frances Shand Kydd, who later became known as the mother of Diana, Princess of Wales.[1][2] Her godmother was Mary of Teck.[1][2] Roche's paternal grandfather was Frank Work, a railway and shipping businessman, who was married to American heiress Frances Ellen Work.[1] She went to Heathfield and St Paul's Girls' School, and graduated in 1952.[1][2] Roche later earned a degree in a classic literature from University College London.[1][2]
Marriage
editRoche was first married to Anthony Berry, the son of Gomer Berry, 1st Viscount Kemsley, at St Margaret's in Westminster, on 25 November 1954.[1][2] They had two sons, Jo Turnell and Edward Berry, and two daughters, Alexandra Bartz and Antonia Butterworth.[1][2] Their marriage lasted until divorce in 1966.[1][2] Her second marriage was to Denis Geoghan, a tutor, in 1973.[1][2] They divorced in 1980.[1][2] Roche's third and last marriage was to Michael Gunningham, head of classics at a Jesuit school in north London, in 1981, and ended up in divorce in 1989.[1][2]
Later life and death
editRoche started her career as a teacher and retired in her forties.[1] She later worked at Mary Datchelor School in Camberwell, South London.[2] Roche's later became interest in her family story and published a book titled Call Me Maurice: The Life and Times of Lord Fermoy, 1885–1955.[2] She returned to Norfolk and lived in London, England, in 2003. In 2007, Roche's gained a public attention when she organized a gathering of all living descendants of the 1st Baron Fermoy.[2] She died at her residence in London, England, on 3 March 2023 due to a complication from dementia at the age of 88.[2]