A former council chief executive who courted controversy with her forthright style has died.

Sari Conway, 54, ran Eastbourne Borough Council between 1994 and 2001 before being sacked. She left public life to run The Fish Shop in High Street, Rye.

She fought a three-year battle against breast cancer but lost her fight on Sunday night.

Many were opposed to her irascible working style during her time in politics and in February 2001 she was sacked from her £72,000-a-year job as the council's top officer for gross misconduct.

She eventually received a pay-off of £200,000 despite having been found to have bullied staff and to have allowed inappropriate relationships to take precedence over her duties.

A Government inquiry concluded she had destroyed working relationships with her abrasive style.

When she left to run the fish and chip shop her personal fortunes changed. She bought the 400-year-old listed shop for about £500,000 and employed 14 staff at the 60-seater restaurant.

Manager Ty Lelacheur said: "She was quite a character, a real laugh-a-minute. Someone said I'd never get on with Sari but we just clicked and I have never been so close to a boss in my life. She was more like my best friend.

"She was a workaholic and a lovely lady. The phone hasn't stopped ringing since she died.

"I think she forgot about it (the council). She's a fighter and carried on with her life. I don't think she was bitter."

Mrs Conway leaves behind husband, Vince, and three sons, Damian, 19, a student, Oliver, a doctor, and Liam, an accountant living in Bermuda, both in their 20s.

Her funeral takes place on Tuesday at St Thomas Canterbury Church in Magdalene Road, St Leonards, followed by a private burial at Battle.