THE husband of a popular Rolls-Royce worker, who died after a 16-month battle with leukaemia, has paid tribute to his "best friend and beautiful wife".

Mike Hole supported brave wife Carolyn as she underwent two gruelling bouts of chemotherapy and a bone marrow transplant before succumbing to the disease.

The 48-year-old, who worked in imports and exports at Rolls-Royce for 32 years, died at Nottingham City Hospital.

Mike, 47, said: "One of the last times I spoke to her, she was lying in her hospital bed and I leant over and said to her, 'Come on, you need to fight this, I want you back home'.

"She lifted her oxygen mask and said, 'I may not be coming home this time' and she gave me a look that I knew meant that might be it.

"She had battled the disease for nearly 18 months and a third lot of chemotherapy was going to be just too much for her.

"That was the last conversation I had with her.

"I sat and held her hand for as long as I could."

Carolyn lived in the family home, in Pear Tree Street, Derby, for all of her life.

Her father, Ted Shipley, died more than 10 years ago and her mother, Sheila, died five years ago.

She and Mike met six years ago and had been married for two years but never managed to celebrate a wedding anniversary together because Carolyn was in hospital.

Mike, who works as a delivery driver for Molson Coors Brewery, in Burton, said: "We used to visit a lot of museums and we had a standing joke when we got there.

"She used to say to me, 'You will never forget me because Rolls-Royce is everywhere' and she was right.

"It seemed like every museum we went to had a piece of machinery on display that was either made by Rolls-Royce, was powered by a Rolls-Royce engine or had a Rolls-Royce badge fixed to something.

"On our honeymoon in Jersey, we went into a museum and there was even an aircraft with a Rolls-Royce engine."

Mike said that since his wife's death, her sister, Christina Garcia-de-la-Pena, of Warren Street, Alvaston, had been a tremendous support to him. And he has been overwhelmed by the scores of sympathy cards from people who knew Carolyn.

Friends on Carolyn's Facebook page have also left messages of support.

One, from Rachel Nurse, reads: "Caz, you showed me much love and friendship.

"I will think of you every day my beautiful, wonderful friend and will miss you. Sleep tight angel."

Carolyn's funeral takes place at Markeaton Crematorium next Friday at 11.20pm.

Leave a tribute to Carolyn by clicking here