PEOPLE who frequent the Cheese Café in Crediton High Street will probably have no idea that the cheerful lady cooking for, and serving them, was previously a well-known and much-travelled opera singer. 

Penny Walker gave members of Cheriton Fitzpaine Ladies’ Evening Organisation (CLEO) a whistle stop tour of her career, starting at Cheltenham Ladies’ College, where she had some individual coaching, before graduating to the Guildhall School of Music at a time when Lesley Garratt and Gwyn Terfal were also students.  

Penny won the prestigious Kathleen Ferrier award, which was then worth £2,000 and enabled her to travel overseas for further training.  

During her career she sang for the English and Welsh National Operas, at Glynebourne and in European cities such as Zurich.  

She married and had two children and was often torn between seeing them grow up and concentrating on her career.  Her husband was also a singer, and travelled extensively.  

Not surprisingly, the marriage broke down, but thankfully, she had good family support and was able to continue. Her son is now a chorister at Exeter Cathedral.

Penny enthralled us with her stories, and also played two recordings of solos sung at the height of her career.  

At the end of the talk, she allowed us to handle and wonder at the beautiful concert gowns, marvelling at the way in which they were made to enable her to use her powerful voice to maximum effect. 

She was thanked by Julia Sanders.

Mary Nunn