The Haileybury Society is saddened to learn of the death of Robert Gordon – “Gordon” – Grayson (E 38) who has died, aged 95 on 17th January 2020.

Gordon was born in Totley Rise, Sheffield, the son of Robert, a solicitor and Kathleen Grayson. He attended Birkdale School until 1938, when he joined Edmonstone House at Haileybury in the first term of 1938. Exceptionally tall, powerfully built and good at sports, Gordon particularly enjoyed rugby but also played for the second 11 at cricket and represented the school at squash. He became head of house at Edmonstone and Second Senior Prefect of Haileybury.

School days

Gordon Grayson (E 38) — *Above: the same gentle smile – Gordon Grayson in his early years*

Like many of his time, Gordon recalls the long dormitories which were then so typical of Haileybury, with 50 boys in the House with rows of 25 beds on each side of the dorm, separated by a highly polished floor. It was when sitting on that floor at 9.45pm one evening in June 1940 that he sat with his friends listening spellbound to the radio broadcast of Sir Winston Churchill’s inaugural “Blood, toil, tears and sweat” speech.

Gordon retained happy memories of the teachers at Haileybury; his favourite teacher was classics teacher Mr R. L. Ashcroft (author of Random Recollections of Haileybury). He also remembered a succession of House Masters, Messrs Hake, Wennink and Tregenza. Like all Haileyburyians, he made friends for life in his House; in his case, his were John Allan (E 37), Richard Baker (E 39) and, later Revd, John Collins (E 39). John Collins spoke at Gordon’s Thanksgiving Service on 10th February 2020.

Hunting for U-boats

Gordon left school at 18 and started at Trinity Hall, Cambridge University, where he had won a senior scholarship to study classics. However, he was not there long before he was called up, choosing the navy, in which he served for 3 years. This was to prove a challenging and life-changing time for him.

Above: HMS Woodpecker (image courtesy Wikipedia Commons)

After training at HMS Ganges, followed by Royal Naval College Greenwich and on mine-layers off Iceland as midshipman, Gordon was promoted sub-lieutenant. He then served, under the overall command of Captain F.J. “Johnny” Walker CB, DSO on HMS Woodpecker, an anti-submarine sloop, in the Western Approaches based at Gladstone Dock, Seaforth, Liverpool.

In March 1944 his ship sank a U-boat and was then itself torpedoed. Six U-boats were sunk on that patrol and, unusually in wartime, the flotilla (minus Woodpecker) returned to port in a blaze of publicity and were received by the First Lord of the Admiralty, a Mr H. Alexander MP for Sheffield, Hillsborough.

Gordon returned in 1993 to a civic reception in Bootle Town Hall at the 50th anniversary of the Battle of the Atlantic. The whole crew later that year transferred to a new build of the Magpie class, HMS Lark. The Lark took part in the D Day operations protecting convoys crossing the channel having swept it of U-boats.

Arctic convoys and royalty

Later on that year Gordon and his ship commenced the first of four convoy escorts to the Russian Arctic where they encountered mountainous seas and a lot of ice. The first three convoys were uneventful but on the last one they sank a U-boat at the entrance to the Kola Inlet.

The following day the Lark was hit by an acoustic homing torpedo and for the second time in a year Gordon had to abandon ship. When the king and queen visited the channel islands, after their liberation in May 1945, Gordon’s ship took up station in St Helier harbour next to HMS Jamaica carrying the royal couple.

Peace at last – from war to law

After the war, Gordon returned to Cambridge; this time to follow in his father’s footsteps and study law. Upon completing his degree, he was persuaded by his father to train as an articled clerk and join the family firm of solicitors. Eventually his brother John – Derek – Grayson (E 42) also joined him following his service in the Royal Navy during the end of the Palestine Mandate.

Gordon was to meet his future wife, Eleanor Way in 1945. They were engaged in 1948 and married on July 29th 1950 at Stoke D’Abernon in Surrey. On their honeymoon, Gordon received the news that he had passed his law exams and could join the family firm as a solicitor in his own right.

The couple were to have three children. Their first daughter, Jenny, was born in 1951, followed by a son, Anthony ,in 1953 (who very sadly predeceased his parents in 2010), and a second daughter Julia, who was born in 1958.

Serving the community

Both Gordon and Eleanor were committed to serving their local community. Gordon himself became involved in many organizations in Sheffield including becoming a governor of his old primary school, Birkdale, in 1964 and then chairman of the governors for a total of 31 years. Shortly after his retirement in 1992 he was honoured to have the new sixth form block named after him; the Grayson Building.

Yet his local work did not stop here. In the spirit of Haileybury’s commitment to a life of service, Gordon worked variously as: chairman of the governors of Broxford School in Derbyshire; a Magistrate in the Juvenile Court; and chairman of the Probation Service.

He also served on the Town Trust, who give grants to a variety of good causes in the city, helped run Overdale Care Home ( a home with a strong Christian ethos) and was also very involved with the YMCA. A lay reader for many churches in Sheffield, including All Saints, Totley Rise, he was also chairman of the Trustees of the Cheshire Home, which was next door to his home at Brook Hall.

He became senior partner of R. B. Grayson and Sons solicitors, his brother Derek alongside him, when their father finally retired.

Later years

When he was 88 Gordon with a few surviving veterans of the Russian Arctic campaign flew up to Inverness and then to Loch Ewe and Gairloch (Wester Ross) to collect his Arctic Star medal which was presented by the Lord Lieutenant of Skye, Ross and Cromarty. There is a new Arctic Convoys museum at Gairloch in which you will see photographs of Gordon.

In 2013 Gordon and Eleanor were invited to Liverpool cathedral for the national commemoration of the 70th anniversary of the Battle of the Atlantic where they later met had lunch with former comrades and the First Sea Lord.

Eleanor and Gordon moved to a retirement home in 2015 although. Eleanor died the following year after suffering dementia for several years. Aged 92, Gordon’s last trip away from Sheffield was to Liverpool for a civic reception at the Town Hall – again honouring Arctic Convoy veterans. They were entertained by the band of the Royal Marines and by the Type 45 Destroyer, HMS Dragon, which was moored alongside nearby.

After Eleanor died Gordon continued to make friends at his retirement home and was to take part in various activities there, including a poetry group and a little choir, and made the most of what he could still do. He died at Henleigh Hall nursing home, close to Totley, surrounded by his family.

Gordon Grayson (E 38) – Solicitor, community servant and Arctic Convoy survivo