Cooke, 56, who worked for the Observer for 25 years, was diagnosed with cancer earlier this year and died on Friday Cooke, 56, who worked for the Observer for 25 years, was diagnosed with cancer earlier this year and died on Friday Tributes have been paid to the journalist and critic Rachel Cooke after her death from cancer. Cooke, 56, was diagnosed with the illness earlier this year and died on Friday. She worked for the Observer for 25 years , where she was described as “the backbone of the