The larger than life character that is Ashburton town councillor Barbara Nicholl could just meet her match tomorrow when she will be a guest of honour at an exclusive Elton John concert. Cllr Nicholl, who is well-known for her irrepressible personality and tireless fundraising, is receiving treatment for an aggressive form of leukaemia. She won two tickets to the flamboyant rocker's concert after entering a competition organised by the charity, Leukaemia Care. 'I was in Turner Ward at Torbay Hospital reading about the competition, but thought how no one ever seems to win these things,' she said. 'I entered anyway, and a few weeks later my husband, David, said he'd had a phone call and had I entered a competition because I'd won two tickets to see Elton John. 'I said, yeah right, someone's pulling my leg here.' Cllr Nicholl will be travelling to Worcester today before having lunch and attending tomorrow's concert with nine other patients and their partners from across the country. Eve Martin, of Leukaemia Care, said: 'We thought the competition was another way of showing people with leukaemia, lymphoma and the allied blood conditions how much we, as a charity, are here to care and want to help.' The gesture is not lost on Cllr Nicholl, who is thrilled at the prospect of seeing one of her musical heroes perform and perhaps even having her photograph taken with him. 'I never use to have much luck winning things, but since I've had cancer I've had a nice little run of luck, so who knows,' she said.
