Rivals producer shares criticism from late writer Dame Jilly Cooper who demanded 'Stop making my macho men cry!'

Dame Jilly died unexpectedly in October, and was best-known for penning The Rutshire Chronicles, with Rivals also becoming a beloved book series.

The latter was an 11-novel series published in 1988, with the series making its screen debut in 2024.

Writer and executive producer of the Rivals TV series, Laura Wade, recalled that Dame Jilly had been a ray of "human sunshine," but recounted some negative feedback the author had shared.

Speaking at Hay Festival, the BBC reports how Ms Wade had stated: "We were so lucky to have Jilly…

"You would expect someone to be quite strict about what you do with their key characters, and she really wasn't.

"She would tell us, if I was making Rupert (Campbell-Black) cry too often, that was one of her favourites – 'stop making my macho men cry all the time.'"

Author Dame Jilly had also been a journalist, and her death prompted endless tributes to flood in from fans.

It was revealed she had suffered injuries from a fall at her home, which devastatingly led to her death.

After the news was announced, Queen Camilla was among those sharing heartfelt tributes, describing her as a "wonderfully witty and compassionate friend."

The tribute continued: "May her hereafter be filled with impossibly handsome men and devoted dogs."

During the Hay Festival discussion, Victoria Smurfit, who plays Maud O'Hara in Rivals, shared with fans the moment the cast heard about Dame Jilly's death.

"I came back (from a break) and Eliza Mellor, our extraordinary on-set producer, was in the room and everything about her was devastated, and I remember walking in and going, 'Oh God, someone's died,'" she stated.

The BBC reports that Ms Mellor continued: "And it is a testament to Jilly's sparkle and her champagne soaked soul of heavenly delight that at 88 there was not one iota of me that thought it might be her.

"She'd been across all the episodes, she'd been across season three, she'd been across everything, and she dropped and rolled... And now she gets to have fun up there."

Dame Jilly had sold more than 11 million books in the UK alone and had served as an executive producer on the TV adaptation of Rivals.

Lee Mason, Executive Director of Scripted at Disney+ EMEA, paid tribute to the author shortly after news of her death broke.

He called her "irreplaceable" and "a trailblazer in British literature celebrated for her joyful, naughty and insightful writing in a world often too serious."

Mr Mason acknowledged the honour of bringing Dame Jilly's cherished fictional universe to television screens, stating: "It has been a privilege to bring her beloved world of Rivals to television."