Susana, Lady Walton

[2] Born in Buenos Aires in 1926, Lady Walton was the daughter of a prominent Argentinian lawyer, Dr Enrique Gil.

[3] She was educated at a college run by Spanish nuns where she took a diploma in accountancy followed by a degree as a public translator in English.

[6] The residence hosted many celebrities, including Laurence Olivier and Vivien Leigh, Hans Werner Henze, W. H. Auden, Terence Rattigan, Binkie Beaumont, Maria Callas and Charlie Chaplin.

[8] She also appeared in Palmer's documentary William Walton: At the Haunted End of the Day (1981) and in Ken Russell's Classic Widows (1995).

[10] Lady Walton was awarded an honorary degree from the University of Nottingham, an MBE in 2000[11] and the Order of Merit of the Italian Republic (Grande Ufficiale).

The Nymphaeum – Lady Walton created her own memorial at La Mortella . The inscription reads: This green arbour is dedicated to Susana, who loved tenderly, worked with passion and believed in immortality.