Laura Ashley founder Sir Bernard dies at 82

Sir Bernard Ashley, who helped found the fashion firm that carried his wife Laura's name, has died aged 82.

A family spokesman said he died from cancer at home in the Elan Valley, mid-Wales, on Saturday.

Sir Bernard, who described himself as an engineer by profession and an entrepreneur by nature, married the then Laura Mountney in 1949.

The Laura Ashley brand grew into a worldwide success from humble beginnings in the couple's London flat.

Inspired by a holiday in Italy and a visit to a Women's Institute exhibition at the Victoria and Albert Museum, they started making headscarves in 1953.

The company, initially known as Ashley Mountney Ltd, soon changed its name to Laura Ashley and moved first to rural Kent then Wales.

Their Victorian-inspired designs caught the mood of the late Sixties and by 1970 sales had reached £300,000.

By 1975 shops had opened in Australia, America, Canada and Japan and turnover had hit £5million a year.

By the time the firm celebrated its silver anniversary in 1979 turnover was £25million.

Laura Ashley died in 1985 after a fall at home. Sir Bernard remained a board member of the company until 1998. He was knighted in 1987.

The family finally cut its connections to the firm in 2001.

His second wife, Regine Burnell, survives him along with two daughters and two sons from his first marriage.