#intimations-online

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17 April

Today is the anniversary of the death of Sir John Paul Getty KBE.  He was the elder son of Jean Paul Getty (Senior), one of the richest men in the world at the time.

His first marriage ended in divorce and he lost his second wife, a Dutch Actress and Model Talitha Pol to a drugs overdose in 1971. He became reclusive and moved to Rome where his eldest son, John Paul Getty III was kidnapped. A $17 million ransom demand was issued and his father initially refused to help, A few years later, and after the death of his father, he became depressed and addicted to drugs.

He turned his life around and became a philanthropist, using his fortune to benefit many good causes. Indeed it is reported that he made a number of large donations to various artistic and cultural causes including the National Gallery which received £50m.

He acquired an interest in cricket and built a replica of The Oval cricket ground within the grounds of his 2500 acre estate at Wormsley Park, in Buckinghamshire. He also became the President of Surrey County Cricket Club and funded a new stand at Lord's Cricket Ground.

He was awarded an honorary knighthood in 1986 for services to causes including cricket, art and the Conservative Party. His honorary knighthood became substantive when he became a British citizen in 1997.

He died in 2003 at 70 years of age.

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16 April

On this day we remember Fred Davis OBE.

  He was an English Snooker and Billiards Player whose career spanned from 1929 to 1993 and together with his brother Joe, were the only players who managed to win a world title in both.

He won the British Boys Under 16 Billiards Championship and was automatically deemed as a professional under the rules of the Billiards Association at the time, however the sport went into a sharp decline and he was forced to take up Snooker.

His brother Joe had dominated snooker from 1927 until he retired in 1946, leaving the way clear for Fred who went on to win in 1948, 1949 and 1951. Billiards went through a mini revival and he won the World Billiards Championships in June 1980

Davis played professionally well into old age, making his last appearance in the World Snooker Championship at the Crucible Theatre in 1984 aged 70, however he still recorded wins in the qualifying rounds in 1988 and 1989, but lost his professional status after being beaten in a play-off round by Ian Brumby. After the match he was given a Standing Ovation as we made his way from the arena to the press conference to announce his retirement.

However his status in the game coupled with changes in the rules meant that he was invited to compete in the 1991 World Masters, where he was beaten by the then Number 2 in the world, Steve Davis. It was his last ever TV appearance in a competitive match.

His retirement finally came in 1993 when he was nearly 80 years of age and still ranked 259th in the world. Even then he was reluctant to stop saying that he would have loved to continue playing, but was prevented from doing so by the severe arthritis in his left knee.

He died in 1998, just hours after what would have been his brother Joe's 97th birthday.

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15 April

Today we remember the 96 fans who died and the 766 others who were injured in what has become known as the Hillsborough Disaster.

The deaths occurred in 1989 at an FA Cup Semi-Final at the Hillsborough Stadium in Sheffield, between Liverpool and Nottingham Forrest Football Clubs. As the kick-off approached there was a bottleneck with Liverpool supporters queuing to get in. The Police opened an exit gate but instead of curing the problem it created an even bigger problem inside the ground which resulted in serious overcrowding in the enclosures and to the fans being crushed to death. When questioned by the FA Chairman, the Chief Inspector accused the supporters of rushing the gate.

On the 20th anniversary of the disaster, government minister Andy Burnham called for the police, ambulance and all other public agencies to release documents that had not been made available to Lord Justice Taylor at the original inquiry. This led to the formation of the Hillsborough Independent Panel, which in September 2012 concluded that no Liverpool fans were responsible for the deaths, and that attempts had been made by the authorities to conceal what happened, including the alteration by police of 116 statements relating to the disaster.

You can follow the Memorial Service here: http://www.liverpoolfc.com/history/hillsborough

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14 April

On this day we remember Jim Baxter, the Scottish Midfielder who is widely regarded as one of the country’s greatest footballers.

He was born and spent his younger life in Fife, beginning his playing career with local team Halbeath Juveniles before moving on to junior team Crossgates Primrose then joining Raith Rovers. In 1960 he joined Glasgow Rangers for a Record breaking Scottish Transfer fee of £17,500.

The move coincided with his National Service which he served with the Black Watch and the peak of his career, as he helped his team win ten trophies before breaking his leg and later being transferred to Sunderland.

In the two and a half years he was there he became known for heavy drinking and at the end of 1967 he was transferred to Nottingham Forest before returning to Rangers in 1969 on a free transfer. One year later and aged only 31, he retired from football.

His most memorable international cap was against England in 1967 where he is remembered for juggling with the ball whilst waiting for his team-mates to find good positions. He was given most of the credit for the 3–2 win, but some wished he had made more of an effort to run up a bigger score.

In his prime, he was known for his ability to raise a team's morale, his good tactical vision, precise passing and ability to send opponents the wrong way. He was also known for being a joker on the pitch and having broken with tradition by becoming friendly with several members of the Celtic team.

He died of pancreatic cancer in 2001. His Home town of Hill of Beath has erected a statue in his honour.

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13 April

On this day we remember Jimmy Logan OBE, FRSAMD. He was a Scottish performer, producer, impresario and director

He was born in Dennistoun in Glasgow into a family of entertainers and first appeared in pantomime in 1944 playing the cat in Dick Whittington and His Cat, an association with pantomime that continued throughout his life.

His first acting role was in 1949 in the film Floodtide. He also performed in Mary Poppins. Carry on Abroad and Carry On Girls.

He had a love of Theatre and as well as performing also purchased the Empress Theatre in 1964 and re-opened it as the New Metropole. He brought the rock musical Hair to the theatre in 1970 where it stayed for ten months and was seen by 200,000 people.

He was awarded an honorary doctorate by Glasgow Caledonian University in 1994, received an OBE in 1996 and was elected a Fellow of the Royal Scottish Academy of Music and Drama in 1998.

He died of cancer in 2001, nine days after his 73rd birthday.

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12 April

On this day we pay our respects to a man who is frequently referred to as the greatest boxer of all time, Sugar Ray Robinson. He was an American professional boxer and was inducted into the International Boxing Hall of Fame in 1990.

As an Amateur he had a 100% success rate with 69 knockouts in 85 fights. He turned professional at the age of 19 and by 1951 had a professional record of 128 wins, 1 loss and 2 draws with 84 knockouts. He also a 91 fight unbeaten run, the third longest in professional boxing history.

He held the world welterweight title from 1946 to 1951 and the world middleweight title the following year. He retired in 1952 but came back to regain the middleweight title in 1955. He was named "fighter of the year" in 1942 then nine years in 1951.

He is well regarded and received many tributes including those from fighters such as Muhammad Ali, Joe Louis and Sugar Ray Leonard who have ranked him as the greatest pound for pound boxer in history. He was featured on a commemorative stamp by the United States Postal Service in 2006.

Outside of sport, he became an integral part of the New York social scene with his own restaurant, Sugar Ray's, which hosted a number of stars including Frank Sinatra, Jackie Gleason, Nat "King" Cole and Joe Louis. He had flamboyant personality with good looks, charisma, and a flair for the dramatic.

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11 April

On this day we remember Sir Harry Secombe CBE. He was a Welsh comedian and singer who became something of a British institution.

He was born and spent his younger life in the St Thomas area of Swansea where he was a member of the Church Choir and often performed with his sister at church socials.

During the Second World War he served as a Lance Bombardier in No.132 Field Regiment of the Royal Artillery and was involved in the North Africa Campaign. Whilst there he met Spike Milligan and would later form a comedy duo with him.

In 1946 he joined the cast of the Windmill Theatre and used routines he had developed in Italy, but always claimed that his ability to sing was his saving grace. His first break in radio came when he was chosen as resident comedian for the Welsh series Welsh Rarebit, followed by appearances on Variety Bandbox and a regular role in Educating Archie.

He would later link up with Michael Bentine, Peter Sellers and Spike Milligan to write the now famous comedy radio script which started as Those Crazy People but soon became The Goon Show with him playing the part of Neddie Seagoon.  

He was also a successful singer with a terrific voice and trained under Italian Manlio di Veroli, he developed as a bel canto tenor and had a long list of best-selling record albums. He also appeared in a number of films and appeared in many stage musicals and Television Shows including as a presenter of religious programmes, such as Songs of Praise, Stars on Sunday and Highway.

He was twice the subject of This is Your Life, was appointed a Commander of the Order of the British Empire (CBE) then in 1981 he was knighted. He was also promoted to the rank of sergeant by his old regiment, when he visited the Falklands to entertain the troops , 37 years after he had been demobbed.

In later life he had a number of health issues and died from prostate cancer on 11 April 2001 at 79 years of age. He was survived by his wife Myra and their four children.

The inscription on his Tombstone reads: "To know him was to love him."

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10 April

Today we remember the English actor, screenwriter and broadcaster Peter Jones. He was born in Wem, Shropshire in 1920 and first appeared as an actor at 16 years of age.

In his early career he appeared in the repertory theatre then in the early fifties starred alongside Peter Ustinov in the BBC’s Radio Comedy In All Directions. He was also the voice of the Book in the Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy which also went out on LP and on TV. He narrated shows and documentaries for Radio and Television and wrote and starred in the sitcom Mr Big and in J Kingston Platt’s Showbiz Handbook.

He appeared in a number of films spanning four decades, from Private’s Progress in the fifties to Chariots of Fire in eighty one. He also had parts in the Television comedy series, The Goodies and in a number of Drama’s, although is perhaps best known for his role as Mr Fenner  in the TV Series The Rag Trade.

He died in 2000 at 79 years of age.