Background
Lennon was born on Haddon Street, in the Gorse Hill district of Stretford. She was the second child of Edward and Margaret Mooney, and grew up with her elder sister Margaret and her younger brother Wilfrid.
Lennon was born on Haddon Street, in the Gorse Hill district of Stretford. She was the second child of Edward and Margaret Mooney, and grew up with her elder sister Margaret and her younger brother Wilfrid.
Many comparisons have been made between Lennon"s work and that of fellow Stretfordian L. South. Lowry. Her paintings have been described as "Lowry-esque, but with more humour". She also began drawing cartoons for Punch Magazine.
In 1928 Mooney began work as a draughtsman"s assistant at the Metropolitan-Vickers factory in Trafford Park.
They moved back to Stretford in 1943, after her husband"s injuries during the Manchester Blitz forced her to return to work to support the family. She took a job with the Ministry of Defence as a draughtsman, drawing plans for new war planes.
FThey remained in Stretford until the late 1970s, when they retired to Flixton, Greater Manchester. She released several books, including best-selling collections entitled A Trafford Childhood (1986) and A Manchester Childhood (2001).
In 2002 she was commissioned as the official artist for the Commonwealth Games and produced a special book of paintings relating to games and sports.
In 2003 Lennon was awarded an Administration Member of the Order of the British Empire by Prince Charles for her contribution to arts and charity, which included extensive work for the Street Francis House Hospice in Didsbury. She was presented with two honorary degrees in 2004, the first from Salford University on 14 July and the second from Manchester Metropolitan University on 16 July. She died in Longsight, Manchester at the Little Sisters of the Poor nursing home on 24 January 2015, aged 102.
Well-known collectors of her work include former Member of Parliament Winston Churchill.
