One in every of Britain’s solely feminine chimney sweeps dies at 84

• Edith Newman was born in Brighton in 1932 and joined her father’s business
• She worked in the 50s and 60s for stars such as George Robey
• Ms. Newman also worked in famous hotels such as the Metropole and the Grand
• Her son said he would miss “her wicked sense of humor”
• This included the request for a stripper gram as a gift for her 70th birthday

One of Britain's few female chimney sweeps who cleaned for the stars of the 1950s and 1960s has died.

Edith Newman worked for stars such as comedian and music hall star George Robey and met Prime Minister Sir Winston Churchill while working in a number of major hotels.

Mrs Newman, who was 84 when she died, used traditional chimney brushes and more modern chimney vacuums to remove soot and ash from the chimneys of the Metropole Hotel, the Grand and the home of actor George Robey.

Edith Newman, one of the few female chimney sweeps in Great Britain. She died at the age of 84.

Her son Will Newman, 56, said his mother would be missed for her “mischievous sense of humor,” which led to her requesting a stripper profile for her 70th birthday.

Mrs Newman was born Edith Martin in Woodingdean, Brighton, East Sussex on 12 May 1932 and worked as one of the few female chimney sweeps in the country for Bru-Vac, her father William Martin's Brighton business.

She was just 22 when she joined her father's company and is considered the first female cleaner in Brighton.

Mr Newman remembers that as a child his mother introduced him to Winston Churchill, who was staying at the Dudley Hotel.

He said: “Through Mum's connection to the Dudley Hotel, she learned that Winston Churchill stayed there in the early 1960s.”

“She took us all there to meet him and he patted me on the head.”

She worked for stars such as comedian and music hall star George Robey and met Prime Minister Sir Winston Churchill while working in a number of major hotels (pictured with her great-grandfather).

Mrs Newman's work also included hair-raising moments, such as crawling through the narrow, horizontal chimneys of the Cox Pill factory in Lewes Road, Brighton.

Mr Newman, who runs the Facebook history group Brighton Past, believes Edith was the only female chimney sweep at the time.

He said: “She was very proud of her work. I think she worked with her father for about 10 to 12 years.”

“As far as we know, she was the only one, and we had a newspaper clipping from Australia – even there they knew about her.”

Mrs. Newman was married to Fred Newman, cared for her three children full-time, and enjoyed her hobbies, fishing, and musicals.

Mrs Newman, who was 84 when she died, cleaned soot and ash from the chimneys of the Metropole Hotel, the GrandThis and the home of actor George Robey using traditional chimney brushes and more modern chimney vacuums. Mrs Newman was born Edith Martin in Woodingdean, Brighton, East Sussex on 12 May 1932 and worked for Bru-Vac, her father William Martin's Brighton business

She later lived in Whitehawk and met her partner Daniel Brown.

Mr Newman said he would miss his mother's mischievous sense of humour.

He added: “As my mother approached her 70th birthday, we asked her what she wanted. 'A stripper-gram,' she said. 'I've never seen one.'

“And that's what she got, a guy dressed as a cop – and she loved every second of it. That was my mother.”

Edith, who lived at Ireland Lodge Nursing Home in Woodingdean, died after a short illness on 23 December 2016.

She leaves behind her children Will and Ruby and nine grandchildren.