DEATHS AND OBITUARIES
Returning to England after his National Service, Tom started his working career in the timber industry back in his hometown of Hartlepool and played rugby for Hartlepool Rovers.
Tom’ s career took the family across the length of the country, from Hartlepool to Hillingdon( West London) to Mellor( near Blackburn) to Saltburn( in the Northeast) to Shoreham( on the south coast). Finally arriving in Farnham, Surrey in 1972, where the family put down roots.
Tom was now working for Crosby Doors and was appointed as Managing Director in the mid-70s. Olwyn worked at the Citizens Advice Bureau and for Cruise Bereavement Counselling. Olwyn was awarded the OBE in the 2000 New Year Honours; an achievement which was only possible due to the support she received from Tom.
After leaving Crosby’ s, Tom then changed industry and worked as Managing Director importing marble and granite. In this role, Tom travelled on business trips around the globe, including India, China, Italy and South Africa, sourcing materials.
After retirement, Tom enjoyed life by the sea at the family caravan in Devon, spending time with his children, grandchildren and great grandchildren. He continued to enjoy watching rugby, usually with a beer or two. He always enjoyed sharing stories of his happy days at Pocklington. Tom was a proud Old Pocklingtonian.
( David Dawson, 75-78)
Paul Hutton( 49-46) and I had been good friends since May 1951 at Pocklington School and, despite both of us living in quite different locations throughout our lives, we remained in touch and visited each other in our numerous homes. As a young schoolboy, he was irrepressible. His social skills, talkative nature, and intelligence enabled him to succeed in many spheres.
He was the lead treble in the School Choir, a diver in the Swimming Team, an enthusiastic member of the
CCF, always involved in school plays, and rang the bells in Pocklington Church.
Paul’ s commitment to the School continued long after he left not only through his philanthropic support of building projects and bursaries, but also through his involvement with the Old Pocklingtonian Association. For several years, Paul made the arrangements for the OP London dinner when it was held at The Farmers’ Club during the late‘ 90s. In more recent times, he was a regular at the biennial Dinosaur Club Luncheon in Wetherby, and in May 2014 attended the Quincentenary celebration events held in York to mark the School’ s 500th anniversary.
Paul’ s career path began during his time in the Sixth Form, when he was offered the opportunity to join Smiths Gore Land Agents in York as an articled clerk. He became a fully qualified Land Agent in 1963.
In 1963, he married Marion( née Matthews), the sister of Barry( 51-59) and Malcolm( 55-59) who are OPs. They lived in a flat in York before moving to Sand Hutton. Paul worked voluntarily as a special constable and also joined the OP Freemasons Lodge. In December 1964, their first child, Kathryn, my Goddaughter, was born followed by Christopher in 1967, and Jonathon in 1969.
By the mid-sixties, Paul had worked well at Smiths Gore, who decided to give him the role of Resident Land Agent at Wykeham Abbey Estate, the ancestral home of Lord and Lady Downe. Initially, they lived in Ruston but moved to an Estate house in Wykeham after Lord Downe had persuaded Paul to leave Smiths Gore and work for him directly. During this period, Paul and Marion cemented strong lifelong friendships with Peter Milner( 55-57), Peter Nettleton( 49-58), and Martin Johnston and their wives.
In 1978, Smiths Gore headhunted Paul to move to Blenheim Palace to be the Resident Land Agent for the Duke of Marlborough where he lived in an enormous Estate house called China Corner.
Lord Downe was very supportive and kept Paul on a consultancy retainer for the rest of his life.
By the mid-eighties, Paul moved to work in Smiths Gore’ s offices in Peterborough by which time he was a Partner. They lived in Polebrook, near Oundle, in Garden Cottage, their last house move. He was very involved with Church property and had a good relationship with the Bishop of Peterborough. Also, he was a Church Warden and Lay Reader.
He was awarded an OBE for services to East Anglia as well as being President of the Land Agents Section of RICS.
A lot of fun time was spent in France where the family acquired a cottage in the Loire Valley. Northampton Saints also benefitted from his support as a season ticket holder. As he gradually withdrew from Smiths Gore he took on significant charity work. The extent of his impact on peoples’ lives was manifest when more than 200 attended his funeral in Polebrook.
( Will Wilson 51-58 and John Nettleton 78-89)
David Andrew Kilby( 86-88) was born on 29 February 1972 to Ann and Ted Kilby and attended Pocklington School from 1986 to 1988.
David lived in Armthorpe, Doncaster, close to both his brothers, and family was always at the heart of his life. When in his mid-twenties, he faced the immense challenge of being diagnosed with Myotonic Dystrophy, a rare genetic condition that causes progressive muscle weakness and for which there is no known cure.
Despite this, David bore his diagnosis with remarkable fortitude. He never complained, meeting each day with resilience and a determination to live life as fully as possible. He loved rugby and although he admitted he was never a star player, he played to the best of his ability, and the single try he scored became a treasured memory, made all the more special because of the effort it took. Off the field, he remained an avid supporter, finding great pleasure in watching matches on television and sharing in the camaraderie of the sport he loved.
David passed away on 9 November 2025 aged 53. His strength of character, his unwavering positivity, and his ability to find happiness in life’ s simple moments will be remembered by all who knew him.
( Anne and Ted Kilby)
Dr Timothy( Tim) William Isherwood Lovel( 47-54) was born in Driffield in 1935. On passing his 11 +, he started at Pocklington in 1947 where his favourite subjects were Latin and History. He told many stories of his time at the School under the headship of Mr Pitts-Tucker. Tim kept quiet at all times to avoid trouble, but this came to the attention of the Head who wrote in one report“ he must not always rely upon his cream of tartar”! Eventually his family deciphered the rather tricky handwriting to
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