Rest easy, ΜΑTRON SLOAN

WANDIN VALLEY RESIDENTS HONOUR THEIR FAVOURITE NURSE

-  Phillip Koch

Her wonderful portrayal of tough but compassionate Matron Margaret Maggie' Sloan touched the hearts of millions, so it was to be expected that a tsunami of tributes flowed in when A Country Practice's doyenne, Joan Sydney, passed away at the age of 86.

"Joan was a trailblazer in so many ways," her ACP co-star and good friend, Di Smith, tells New Idea. "She was fantastic, one of a kind.

"We had so much fun because she was always driving it to be better.

"Joan was the one in rehearsal and on set who was always striving for excellence. She made the whole thing better.

"For me, as a really young and inexperienced person I was only beginning my career-Joan brought all this incredible theatrical rigour to it which was fantastic to work with and that was quite inspirational."