Molly Badham

She kept animals from an early age, and bred dogs and ran a boarding kennel, before setting up a pet shop in her home town.

Although the animal soon died, the two business rivals went on to share a flat – along with two chimpanzees, Sue and Mickey – and later became co-founders of Twycross Zoo.

Their collection of animals grew, and in 1962 they bought Norton Grange, a large Victorian rectory with 12 acres (49,000 m2) of land, plus farm buildings and stables.

Badham and Evans set up a charity, the East Midlands Zoological Society, to which their animal collection and zoo premises were donated in 1972.

She was awarded an honorary BSc by Leicester University in 1982, and received an MBE in the Queen's Birthday Honours 2002, for her services to the conservation of endangered species.