Composer, born in Broxbourne, Hertfordshire, SE England, UK. She studied under Vaughan Williams at the Royal College of Music, then went to Prague, where her first major work, a piano concerto, was performed in 1930. Her most characteristic work is in the field of chamber music, and among her best-known compositions are her Symphony (1953) and the overture Proud Thames (1953). She has also written choral, operatic, and ballet music, as well as orchestral works and songs. She was made a dame in 1987. She married writer William Richard LeFanu in 1930; their daughter, Nicola (Frances) LeFanu (1947-- ), is also a composer.