My memory of John is of someone who always put tremendous energy and enthusiasm into whatever he did, whether it was putting on a play or planning his garden. He was keen on opera when I first knew him but was happy to write different words for popular arias to entertain family and friends. One story was about a dinner party and I can never hear "La Donna e Mobile" without thinking of John and Tomato soup. When we first knew him John was at Cambridge and keen on rowing. I remember a happy afternoon by the river Cam, watching all the college boats and waiting for the St. Johns boat to appear so we could shout encouragement as John rowed by. Mother and Father were happy to take us although the drive to Cambridge took three hours in the days before the M11 was built. John was Best Man at our wedding and I remember his excellent speech on behalf of my bridesmaid and how he was unfazed when she came to Waterloo with us in full bridesmaid outfit. The family were important to John, both his immediate family and the wider family. As host he would devise quizzes which sometimes contained the terrible puns for which he was well-known. We will miss you John Love Gill