DEATHS AND OBITUARIES
OBITUARIES
DEATHS AND OBITUARIES
We regret to announce the passing of the
following OPs and we extend our sympathy to
their families and friends:
(Obituary kindly submitted)
Sally Arnup (sculptor of Pocklington School’s
William Wilberforce statue), 23 December
2015
Charles Edward Burgin (44-52), of Askrigg,
North Yorkshire, 25 July 2016
Terrence Charles Casey (52-59) of Leeds,
West Yorkshire, 4 January 2016
John Frederick Groundwater (51-56) of
Ripon, North Yorkshire, 27 November 2015
Christopher G Johns (59-64) of Totnes,
Devon, 16 March 2016
Alan Kent (34-42) of Stourbridge, West
Midlands, 22 September 2015
Stephen Lane (56-65) of Pocklington, 8
February 2016
Edward Patrick Latham (37-44) of
Wezembeek-Oppem, Belgium, 3 June 2016
Gavin Mercer (47-48) of Harrogate, August
2016
Sean O’Byrne (75-80) of Hull, 2 October
2015
George Frederick Noel Pedley (34-38),
6 October 2016
William Ian Scarborough (94-52) of
Pontypool, Gwent, 28 September 2015
Grahame Arthur Sutton (71-02, Former
Staff), 26 September 2016
F Denness Tattersall (43-44), of Thirsk, 8
October 2015
Simon Thelwell (62-67), 16 July 2016
Brian Johnson Worthy (45-52) of
Nunthorpe, Middlesbrough, 15 December
2015
Charles Edward Burgin (44-52)
Charles Edward Burgin was born in Scarborough. He
was an only child. In about 1940 he was evacuated
with his mother to near Askrigg in Wensleydale,
North Yorkshire. He joined Bainbridge Primary
School and made many friends. When the war
danger had passed he returned to Scarborough.
However, he loved Wensleydale and returned there
during his school holidays. In 1945, he was sent to
board at Pocklington School and, inevitably, got up
to various pranks! Edward, as he was known, had a
mischievous streak and would always make people
laugh. He still clung to his love of Wensleydale and
when old enough would take the train and go on his
own and occasionally he cycled the whole way from
Scarborough (90 miles).
John Frederick Groundwater (51-56)
John passed away peacefully on 27 November 2015.
Although born in Selby, he lived for most of his life
in Ripon where he was a Partner in Eccles Heddon
Solicitors until his retirement in 2010. John was a
natural sportsman and, when first living in Ripon
in the mid-1960s, he played his rugby for Selby
RFC where he captained the 1st XV in the 196970 season. He was later persuaded to join Ripon
RUFC where he played for a short period before
retiring from playing through injury. Off the field he
was involved for many years with the club sitting on
the committee, adding invaluable expertise both as
a selector and also as the club’s solicitor. He was,
through his practice, a sponsor, and he was made a
life member of the club.
(Obituary by Ripon RUFC President Tim Wray from
website)
His parents decided to move to Shropshire and
Edward, having finished his schooling in 1952,
went to Harper Adams Agricultural College for
a year. After National Service in the RAF, he then
worked in agriculture and had close contact with
Shropshire farmers. In 1958, aged 23 years, Edward
joined the Crown Agents in their Veterinary/Game
Department in Kenya. He loved the expat life. He
became friendly with Joy Adamson (of Born Free
fame) and with Armand and Michaela Denis, the
early television wildlife photographers. He trained
wild cheetahs to stay with him and sleep on his bed
− at one time there were three!
In 1963 he was recruited into the Diplomatic
Corps/Foreign Office. For a short time he worked
in London but in 1964 he was sent to, what was
then, Tanganyika where he spent several years but
also had forays into other countries. In 1967 he was
sent to the Crown Colony of Aden when the British
military were withdrawing the troops. His next
venue was Malta where he worked for the British
High Commission. He had a flat on the eighth floor
and one day the Red Arrows flew below him! He
loved that posting. The next stop was Cyprus. He
was there during the Partition between Turkey and
Cyprus.
Eventually, he settled down and worked in the
Civil Service as a Resettlement Officer at Catterick
Garrison and later undertook several jobs for the
Civil Service in Richmond and Northallerton.
After his father had died he persuaded his mother
to move to Wensleydale. For a while they rented
their old cottage and finally bought a house in 1969
in Askrigg.The move into the area was important for
Edward as it gave him a base from his foreign work
in a place he loved.
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Edward took early retirement in 1980. He enjoyed
his garden and cooking. He also played bridge and
travelled to far flung places particularly, for some
years, to South Africa. Edward died peacefully in his
home. He leaves no near relatives but he was much
loved by his close circle of friends who range from
his school days and expats to his life in Wensleydale.
Christopher G Johns (59-64)
It is with great sadness that I report the death on 16
March 2016 of my contemporary and dear friend
Christopher G Johns who left school in 1964.
Chris and his younger brother Michael, who sadly
predeceased him, were boarders – their father
serving as a civil servant in Limassol, Cyprus where
they spent the summers, swimming and learning to
play the bouzouki (memories of Never on Sunday!).
Other holidays were spent in his grandparents’
house in York, spending lots of time with me and
our journalistic ‘whiz’ contemporary, the late Andrew
Hutton (53-63). Between school and university,
Chris joined a group of us on our ‘Grand Tour of
Europe’ doing some 4,000 miles in an old 1950s
Ford shooting brake that we bought for £25 and
later sold for £16, after pushing it through half the
capitals of Europe – singing as we pushed!
From childhood, Chris was a musical prodigy:
As a young boy he was Head Chorister at York
Minster.