Driver Sentenced for Causing Death of 19-Year-Old Actress

A woman whose driving caused the death of a 19-year-old actress has been given a community order and a two-year driving ban. Abbey Ridgway, 26, of Skelmersdale in Lancashire, pleaded guilty on 5 May at Warrington Magistrates' Court to causing the death of Rosa Taylor by careless driving. The collision occurred on 24 July 2025 at the junction of the A4 and B3109 near Corsham in Wiltshire.

Taylor, from Upholland, was a passenger in Ridgway's Hyundai i10 when the vehicle collided with a Scania tipper truck. She was declared dead at the scene. Ridgway and a male passenger were seriously injured. Rosa was traveling to perform in a show in Corsham at the time of the crash. The driver of the HGV was uninjured.

Ridgway was ordered to complete 200 hours of unpaid work, pay £199 in costs, and serve a 12-month community order. She was also banned from driving for two years. Rosa's family described her as a performer who had appeared in productions at the Liverpool Empire Youth Theatre and the Liverpool Playhouse. She had studied musical theatre at the Liverpool Institute for Performing Arts.