Mrs. Diddy Smith hopefully got a new lease of life on Sunday, when hundreds of family and friends joined at the Devonshire Recreation Club for a lively and colourful tribute to the lady who has become known as 'The Queen of Hats'.

This 76-year-old great-grandmother has had an extraordinary life. Some are apt to say she has nine lives and even more, a reference to the full and inimitable way she functions depending on the time, place and season.

She is a member of Christ Church, Devonshire, has been a Pink Lady volunteer at the hospital, and member of the Tons of Fun Revue group among others.

We would venture to say that while many know her as Queen of Hats, there are far more, such as the thousands who have gone to the annual Somerset-St. George's Cup Match over the past three or four decades, who know Diddy as the 'Cup Match Belle', the beautiful, buxom lady in her flowing light blue and dark blue cup match gowns, and her wild hats, running from the sidelines in her stockinged feet with her flowing St. George's Cup Match streamers, as excited as the kids, to acknowledge the feats at bat and ball of her St. George's players.

We will explain later how Mrs. Smith became the mascot of St. George's Cricket Club, and even the darling of the equally rabid Somerset fans.

Mrs. Smith is a phenomenal woman, to say the least. As vibrant as she seemed to be at last year's Cup Match, Diddy has had some serious medical challenges.

In December 2005 she was diagnosed with pancreatic cancer. The news from her doctors served only to fire up her Christian fortitude and family focus. And to quote her youngest sister, Erlin Gibbons, of St. George's, "it's by the grace of God and her own positive, busy disposition, that she has outlived the prognosis of her doctors".

A year ago a highly successful gospel concert was held in Mrs. Smith's honour. This time around the idea came up to feature her in a display of her fabulous hats. Diddy has in excess of 550 of them. That's the tally of the number hats she has kept, having given away or otherwise disposed of hundreds more over the years.

"My mother just loves hats, unique, one of kind creations," said Quillard Smith, who along with her aunt Erlin are her primary caregivers.

She added: "She has hats here, there and everywhere in every possible space in her home at Watlington East Road, Devonshire, and at the homes of other family. She knows exactly where to find them for occasional wear in spring, summer or whatever season. And she has shoes and handbags to match."

Diddy has unquestionably won the hearts and deep admiration of her large family, as manifested by the way they pitched in on Sunday to make the hat show a stunning success. Complemented by good entertainment and refreshments, it lasted over three hours. It began with an air of high anticipation for what was expected to be Mrs. Smith's grand entrance. One hour into the show a spell of gloom was cast when the mistress of ceremonies, niece Doronda (Dee) Smith, was forced to reveal that Aunt Diddy had suffered an overcoming at home during the early hours of Sunday morning and was rushed to intensive care in King Edward VII Memorial Hospital.

However, she was expected to put in an appearance. Progress reports were given at intervals by the emcee. Finally word came that the doctors had yielded, that Diddy was being dressed and would be present around 7 p.m.

So said, so done. And the guest of honour was literally besieged both outside and inside the club when she arrived, smiling broadly in the wheelchair she had acquired.

Mrs. Smith is a rank St. Georgian. She was born in Shinbone Alley on October 27, 1932, the fifth of ten siblings who seemingly were all cricket fanatics, the most famous being the late St. George's Cup Match star Wellington (Buster) Smith.

Another of the four brothers, who are all deceased, was St. George's Corporation member Ronald Smith.

Diddy, as she was nicknamed, married a St. George's Cup Match player, Herbert Kenneth Smith, a former policeman. The couple celebrated their 57th wedding anniversary on March 15.

Herbert, of course, shared the head table with other kin at the hat show, including the sisters who survive ¿ Madge Smith, Sheila Furbert and Urlin Gibbons. Also she has a host of nieces and nephews who live in Bermuda and abroad.

Among them are Goldie Rose Pyfrom whose home is in California; Ronelle Holloway of Arkansas, and Jewell Lyle of Alabama. Two of the nephews abroad are Dr. Richard Pierce, who is chair of African Studies at Notre Dame University, South Bend, Indiana, and his brother, Christian Pierce, who is in business in California. Diddy and Herbert have five daughters ¿ Judith Tweed, Ellen Hope Smith, Yolanda Woolridge, Quillard Smith and Carol Edwards.

Our pictures show Mrs. Ditty Smith, the 'Queen of Hats' and the legendary 'Cup Match Belle' making her dramatic entrance (top left) at the hat show in her honour at Devonshire Recreation Club on Sunday. Mrs. Smith has a collection of more than 550 hats, some of which were modelled by family members before a large and enthusiastic audience. Mistress of Ceremonies was her niece Dee Smith, who was almost as stylish as her aunt in several of her creations, including a yellow hat, and again Ditty's sister Urlin Gibbons in one of her sister's less flamboyant Cup Match hats. Dee wears a special creation of red flowers which crowned the head of the guest of honour after her late arrival, symbolising the thought of giving her flowers while she alive. Other pictorial highlights show the audience reacting to the several curtain calls featuring Ditty's daughters, grandchildren and others including family friend Mrs. Genora Trott, who modelled fashions from her own personal wardrobe.