They called her Lady Sarah, and they came for her in their droves.
Over the past 10 years, Sarah Hughes cultivated the most wonderful and witty community for fans of the cultural juggernaut Game of Thrones. Readers flocked to her weekly recaps to share in her great love and knowledge of television. With boundless energy and absolutely no spoilers, she gave telly addicts a home and she always made them feel loved and listened to.
I had the honour of editing my TV bellwether, my wonderful friend, who died of cancer on Monday after outliving by years the prognosis doctors dared to give her. I put her longevity down to her passion for life, telly, trashy books, Tottenham Hotspur and Cheltenham races – plus, of course, the depth of her love for her husband, Kris, and their two children, Ruby and Oisín.
Sarah’s devotion to the job was gobsmacking. Her oncologist told her not to wake up at 2am to watch the final episode of Game of Thrones live. Did she listen to them (or us)? She did not. She filed before the crack of dawn, her piece as funny and detailed as ever.
That morning, I wept as I read the outpouring of thanks below the line – thousands of people whose lives were touched by Sarah, whose writing amused them greatly and bettered their lives. She gave so much and was always willing to discuss every theory, no matter how daft. Each week, she appeared on the list of the most prolific staff commenters at the Guardian and Observer – although she always laughed with bitter irony that she was never a staffer at all. But what dedication she showed to the end. Today, I weep again.
There are so many brilliant things to remember, though. When the creator of Game of Thrones, George RR Martin, decided to give one interview around the finale of the show, he sought her out. No one else would do. Kit Harington, who played Jon Snow, once rushed to find her at an awards ceremony to let her know how sorry he was to hear about her illness – and how much he loved her writing. Oh, how she dined out on that.
Her reach went way beyond Game of Thrones, of course. On top of reviewing for various publications and writing copious articles and interviews, she somehow found the time to create similar communities online for fans of Line of Duty – defending to the hilt her beloved Ted Hastings, who may emerge as the ultimate Weasel of the Week – plus Peaky Blinders, Taboo and many more hit shows. I am so glad she got to see how Game of Thrones ended, but I am devastated she didn’t live to see through Line of Duty.
Sarah was so strong for so long after she was told she had stage 4 cancer, and that it was incurable. She was so strong when they told her if she got Covid they couldn’t do anything to help her. She was so strong when she started the Game of Thrones journey for the Guardian just three days after her child was stillborn. She was so strong when she filed copy about Line of Duty from her final hospital bed.
I hope, Ruby and Oisín, that you can see through the unbearable sadness how many lives your mum touched.
And dear Lady Sarah, our archmaester, keeper of the scrolls and the ultimate watcher on the Wall: we all raise a glass of the finest Dornish red to you. Fare thee well.
Kate Abbott is the Guardian’s TV editor. She is on maternity leave
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