Our thoughts and condolences are with the family and friends of those Old Boys who have recently passed away. To let us know about the death of an Old Boy, please get in touch.
2024 Obituaries
The deaths of the following Old Boys and staff have been reported to us during 2024:
George Varley, History & English master 1966-1993 (died 17 March 2024, aged 90)
Michael Watson (Mickey), 1965-72 (died April 2024, aged 70)
2023 Obituaries
The deaths of the following Old Boys and staff have been reported to us during 2023:
John Norman Beck, 1952-56 (died 27 January 2023, aged 82)
Roy Bell, 1940-46 (died January 2023, aged 92)
Clifford Boothman, 1942-50 (died 1 November 2023, aged 91)
David Crousdon, 1940-49 (died 6 November 2023, aged 92
Rufus Drake, 1966-73 (died October 2023, aged 68)
Richard Ehlers, 1947-54 (died aged 88)
Michael Harrison (‘Clarty’), 1957-65 (died 18 September 2023, aged 77)
William Nicholas Guy Hitchon (known as Nick) 1968-75 (died aged 65)
Ian Holdsworth, 1948-50 (died 10 August 2023, aged 89)
Brian Nelson, 1945-53 (died 7 June 2023, aged 88)
Paul Scott, 1982-86 (died 1 November 2023, aged 54)
Anthony Shires, 1957-65 (died 24 November 2023, aged 77)
David Smith, 1957-62 (Old Boys’ Society Secretary 1981-87 & Chairman 1997-99) (died 17 June 2023, aged 77)
David Stephens, Head of PE 1987-97 (died 28 June 2023, aged 82)
Peter Tillotson, 1944-52 (died 14 August 2023, aged 89)
Richard Wade-Smith, 1967-74 (died 15 September 2023, aged 67)
Roger L. Whittaker, 1951-59 (died 9 November 2023, aged 83)
Ben White, 1998-2005 (died 1 January 2023, aged 35)
2022 Obituaries
The deaths of the following Old Boys and staff were reported to us during 2022:
Malcolm Clark, 1955-62 (died August 2022, aged 79)
Leo Doyle, 1990-97 (died April 2022, aged 42)
John Forster, 1946-54 (died 26 June 2022, aged 85)
David Frankland, 1952-60 (died 30 April 2022, aged 80)
Alec Green CBE, 1932-38 (died June 2022, aged 100)
Edward Hamlin, 1950-58 (died 23 September 2022, aged 83)
Donald Hannam, 1945-50 (died February 2022, aged 87)
Dennis Laycock, 1942-48 (died 13 February 2022, aged 90)
Robert Middleton, 1979-85 (died April 2022, aged 53)
Andrew Midgley, 1970-78 (died 13 September 2022, aged 64)
Craig Peach, 1995-2002 (died 21 June 2022 in Seoul, aged 38)
Will Phillip, 2000-2007 (died August 2022, aged 33)
2021 Obituaries
The deaths of the following Old Boys and staff were reported to us during 2021:
Max Baker, 1957-60 (died January 2021, aged 77)
Alistair Jack Broadley, 1954-60 (died April 2021, aged 77)
Craig Cartman, 1985-90 (died January 2021, aged 47)
David Corbett, 1939-48 (died 27 June 2021, aged 90)
John Denton, 1944-53 (died March 2021, aged 86)
Jim Hartley, Teacher of French 1963-1988 (died July 2021, aged 89)
Graham Leadbeater, 1947-54 (died 4 July 2021, aged 85)
David Keith Morgan, 1959-67 (died 28 February 2021, aged 72)
Iain Arthur Nutter, 1939-47 (died 30th September 2021 in Jersey, aged 92)
William Richard Smith, 1953-61 (Head Boy 1960-61) (died 29 January 2021, aged 78)
Leonard Storey, 1943-48 (died 5 June 2021, aged 88)
Geoffrey Whitley, 1957-60
2020 Obituaries
The deaths of the following Old Boys and staff were reported to us during 2020:
Fred Armitage, 1938-44 (also former school governor and Old Boys’ Society Secretary) (died at Manorlands Hospice, aged 91)
Brian James Atkinson, 1951-59 (died 20 November 2020, aged 79)
Ken Barnes, 1956-61 (died March 2020, aged 75)
John Michael Bell (Mickey), 1946-53 (died 2 October 2020 in Eastbourne, aged 85)
David Binns, 1947-52 and Art Master 1975-78 (died 13 May 2020, aged 84)
Steven Cartman, 1983-90 (died October 2020, aged 49)
Peter W Clarke, 1957-65 (died 23 December 2019, aged 73)
John Falshaw, 1942-49 (died 2 February 2020, aged 89)
William Michael Feather, 1944-53 (died 18 June 2020, aged 85)
Ira Fothergill, 1942-48 (died 23 March 2020, aged 89)
Stephen Judge, 1938-45 (died aged 92)
Melvin Hawkins, 1946-51 (died 12 March 2020, aged 85)
Philip Mawson, 1944-50 (died aged 86)
John Richard Dunbar Pollard, 1965-73 (died 17 September 2020, aged 66)
Jonathan Reed, 1965-72 (died 19 March 2020, aged 65)
John Rycroft, 1934-38 (died 20 March 2020, aged 94)
Peter Rymer, 1942-48 (died 4 April 2020, aged 88)
Ron Shaw, 1941-43 (died aged 91)
Charles Arthur Smith, 1937-44 (died aged 93)
Simeon Thornton, 1951-56 (died 2 March 2020, aged 79)
Lionel Watson, 1942-47 (died 31 May 2020, aged 88)
Hubert Wray (known as Dan), 1943-51 (died 3 July 2020, aged 87)
2019 Obituaries
The deaths of the following Old Boys and masters were reported to us during 2019:
Brian Ashby, 1949-54 (died 31 December 2018, aged 80)
Chris Baker, 1954-60 (died December 2019, aged 76)
Daniel Burman, 1994-2001 (died 6 November 2019, aged 36)
John Child, 1956-63 (died 11 October 2018, aged 73)
Sam Elliott, 2011-16 (died 12 January 2019, aged 18)
Stephen Fairchild, 1956-63
William Hodgson, 1953-58 (died 18th June 2019, aged 77)
Garry Roberts, 1950-55 (died 11 May 2019, aged 80)
Gurth Robinson, 1937-42 (died 2 April 2019, aged 92)
2018 Obituaries
The deaths of the following Old Boys and masters were reported to us during 2018:
Colin L Clarkson, 1940-48 and Head Boy 1947-48 (died 28 November 2018, aged 88)
Laurence Darrah, 1934-37 (died 29 July 2018 at York Hospital, aged 97)
William Hannam, 1957-66 (died 12 August 2018, aged 72)
William Llewllyn Jones (known as Billy), 1942-50 and master 1957-1986 (died 24th December 2017, aged 86)
Ian Mattock, 1951-58 (died 28 December 2017, aged 77)
Ronald Reeves, 1947-55 (died 4 January 2017, aged 81)
James Michael (Mick) Summers, 1942-49 (died 30 November 2018, aged 86)
Edward Taylor (known to his school friends as ‘Adam’), 1946-51 (died 9 June 2018, aged 83)
John R Turner, 1946-50
Michael Townsend, 1941-45
Colin Williamson, Master 1962-89
2017 Obituaries
The deaths of the following Old Boys and masters were reported to us during 2017:
Peter Armitage, 1939-45 and Old Boys’ Society Chairman 2000-03 (died 22 March 2017 at Craven Nursing Home, aged 88)
Thomas Ashton, 1937-46 (died 12th September 2017, aged 89)
Kevin Baldwin, 1967-74 (died 10 September 2017 at Manorlands Hospice, aged 61)
Thomas (Tommy) Bates, 1949-54 (died 20 January 2017 at Steeton Court Nursing Home, aged 80)
Mike Bingham, Master 1963-96 and Second Master 1989-96 (died 22 March 2017, aged 80)
Nigel Cradock, 1966-73 (died 14 March 2017, aged 61)
John Greenwood, 1941-49 (died 10 January 2017 at home near Ormskirk, aged 86)
Ben Leong, 1998-2005 (died September 2017, aged 29)
Haydn Lyles, 1957-64 (died 10 October 2017, aged 71)
Ivan Rhodes, 1957-62 and Old Boys’ Society Chairman 2009-11 (died November 2017, aged 72)
Wing Commander Richard (Dick) Summers OBE, 1935-39 (died 7 May 2017, aged 95)
Doug Varley, 1931-36 (died 15 January 2017, aged 96)
Harry Wills, 1954-59 (died 25 September 2017 at Airedale Hospital, aged 74)
John R Wilson, 1942-46 (died 9 September 2017 at Airedale Hospital, aged 86)
David Woolley, 1951-56 (died 18 January 2017, aged 76)
2016 Obituaries
The deaths of the following Old Boys and masters were reported to us during 2016:
Andy Abell, 1975-79 (died 21st June at Manorlands Hospice, aged 55)
Christopher Burke, 1960-67 (died 29th August while on a visit to Austria, aged 67)
Gordon Crawford, 1959-66 (died 11th April at home in Brighton, aged 67)
Chris Greenwood, 2001-8 – Head Boy 2007-8 (died 25th August, aged 26)
Brian Irving, 1934-37 (died 17th May in a nursing home in Cheshire, aged 92)
Fred Luther, 1945-52 (died 12th April in York hospital, aged 82)
Ronald (Ronnie) Rishworth, 1942-50 (died 16th July in Holland, aged 83)
John Neil Thompson, 1943-47 (died 4th August, aged 86)
Mark Thompson, 1978-85 (died 23rd June at Airedale Hospital following a brief illness, aged 49)
Howard Tillotson, 1951-59 – Head Boy 1958-9 (died 1st September, aged 76)
Gordon Whitaker, 1972-80 (died 8th November, aged 55)
2015 Obituaries
The deaths of the following Old Boys and masters were reported to us during 2015:
George Barron, 1950-55
Stephen Beck, 1981-86 (died 24th November, aged 46)
Anthony (Tony) Collins, 1969-76 (died in 2014)
Peter Clarke (‘Nuff ‘Nuff), school caretaker 1938-85 (died aged 90)
Dennis French, 1940-46 (died aged 85)
Gladney Haigh, Classics master 1950-56 (died 10th June, aged 90)
John D Hargreaves, 1933-37 (died 14 February 2015, aged 91)
Barry Houghton, 1953-55
Peter Marshall, 1952-60 (died aged 73)
Duncan McCallum, 1955-62 (died 14th January 2015, aged 71)
Gary Smith, 1946-53 (died aged 80)
Barry Titterington, 1957-62
David Weatherill, 1947-52 (died aged 78)
John Wiggan, 1956-63 then Physics master 1990-2005 (died 24th May 2015, aged 69)
2014 Obituaries
The deaths of the following Old Boys and masters were reported to us during 2014:
Brian Atkinson, 1936-44 (former Head Boy) (died July 2014, aged 88)
Francis W. Clarke, 1945-50 (died aged 79)
Wally Evans (Master 1950-89) (died 2nd April 2014, aged 90)
Laurence Gibbon, 1937-45 (died aged 85)
Michael J Greenwood, 1964-72 (died 20 Feb 2014 aged 60 from cancer)
Jack Heald 1939-46 (former governor and Old Boys’ Society committee member) (died 26th July 2014, aged 86)
Joseph G. Hitchon, 1938-45 (died aged 86)
James D. Hudson, 1927-30 (died 5th November 2013, aged 97)
David Jenkinson, 1936-41 (also a Master 1953-89) (died 4th April 2014, aged 89)
Alan Judge, 1936-42 (former Old Boys’ Society committee member) (died 3rd February 2014, aged 88)
John Stanley Kenyon, 1945-53 (died aged 80)
Dr. Stephen Rostron Lord, 1961-68 (died 10th December 2013 aged 63 at Lancaster Royal Infirmary)
George Malcolm Mattock, 1932-36 (died 30th October 2014 aged 94 at Airedale Hospital)
Geoffrey W. Naylor (Master 1952-55) (died 16th April 2014 aged 89 at his care home in Auckland, New Zealand)
Roger Smythe, 1932-36. Died in Sussex aged 94.
John M. Spencer, 1956-64 (died November 2014, aged 70)
Matthew Stringer, 2000-06 (died 11th April 2014, aged 26)
John T. Verity, 1945-50 (died 16th March 2014, aged 80).
2013 Obituaries
The following is a list of the deaths of Old Boys of Ermysted’s Grammar School that have been reported to us in the 12 months ending December 2013:
David Armitage, 1942-50
John Barron 1966-73
Jack Cross, 1938-45
Ian Fothergil, 1940-47 (died 27 October 2013, aged 84)
Geoffrey Howcroft
John Jefford, 1946-53
Roger Knowles, 1948-54
David Rymer, 1948-53
John B Swales, 1939-47
Gordon (Delme) Thomas (Master 1968-1997)
Peter Whitaker, 1945-53
2012 Obituaries
In 2012, we were notified of the following deaths of Old Boys:
Arthur Bilsborough, 1933-38
L.Charlie Branson, 1932-35
Owen Brown, 1932-36
Russell R. Carlisle, 1936-42
Michael Carrington
John P. Clegg, 1954-61
Leonard Duxbury, 1928-33
George Eddie, 1942-48
Ralph T. Hannam, 1928-33
Sam Tate, 1994-2001
Peter L.M. Tennant, 1943-48
Maurice Town, 1957-64
Fred R. Varley, 1934-39
Keith R. Waterworth, 1954-61
David Whittaker, 1953-58
Paul K. Whitaker (Master 1993-2005)