The sister in law of Deal’s slapstick comedy icon Sir Norman Wisdom has died aged 93.

Christina Wisdom was the wife of Norman’s brother Fred, who she married in the late 1940s. She died after a short illness at Deal Hospital, where she worked for 15 happy years.

Her son Peter said: “She always said she wanted to end up there because she knew everyone there and had a lot of friends in the league of friends.”

Mrs Wisdom, formerly of Victoria Mews, Bridgeside, worked in the physiotherapy department after Fred died in 1971.

She got the job after spending a lot of time attending appointments with her husband who was learning to walk again after suffering a stroke.

Her association with the hospital continued for the rest of her life, and she was pictured in the Mercury in May, 2012, after giving a generous donation to the Friends of Deal Hospital.

It was a gesture she wanted to see the results of in her own lifetime.

Norman also showed the staff his support, having built a fondness for the hospital whenever he visited Fred.

“They got to know him there so he was keen to come down and open the fetes,” said Peter.

“Even when he was a big film star he came down to them.”

Christina was well liked in the community. She lived at Park Avenue with Fred, where they raised their family. Laterly she lived at Lister Close before moving to Bridgeside.

When he was in Deal, she would often accompany Norman when he made visits to Talking Newspapers, the charity for which he was patron.

The organisation helps keep blind and partially sighted people abreast of local newspapers’ stories by sending them audio files which clients play via a boom box.

The family tradition in healthcare continued when Christina and Fred’s daughter Anne went into nursing, having completed her training at Margate.

Peter continued his Uncle’s passion for the screen, and became a director of TV programmes, most notably This is Your Life and Wish You Were Here. Christina was delighted that the town continued to hold Norman close to its heart, and she was pleased with J D Wetherspoon’s gesture to name its Queen Street pub the Sir Norman Wisdom in 2013.

“It’s funny because Norman was a teetotaller but it’s good, because it’s a pub that’s always busy with families,” Peter said.

Peter said his mother’s most recent delight was the birth of her great granddaughter Ruby, now aged 18 months.

She also had two grandchildren, Clemmie and Tom.

The funeral of Christina Wisdom will take place at Barham Crematorium on Wednesday, November 18, at noon. The wake will be held at The Royal Hotel, Deal, afterwards. Family flowers only, via J Dilnot Smith & Son. Donations, if wished to The Friends of Deal Hospital.