The Haileybury society is saddened to learn of the death of John Brock (Aby 41) who has died at the age of 94 on 11th May 2022.

John’s daughter Sue Paton has sent the following tribute:

‘John had many happy memories of time at Haileybury, despite it being during the war years. His father chose Haileybury partly because it was within easy reach of London and had not been evacuated to some remote part of England (which he viewed as ‘giving in to Hitler’). He was a Scholar and Company Sergeant Major in the Corp. He became Head of House, then in 1945 Head of School.

After leaving Haileybury John served in the Royal Army Service Corp (1946-1948), which took him to Palestine. He enjoyed the experience of life overseas, and found this time fulfilling.

He gained an Open Exhibition in Classics to Sidney Sussex College, Cambridge, graduating in 1950. He was keen to choose a career which took him abroad again, so he applied for the Colonial Service, and in 1951 headed out to Africa, initially the Gold Coast, then Nyasaland (Malawi as it is known today).

He was described as: “A young man perfectly equipped for the job he was doing… His experience in the Army and in the Gold Coast was reinforced by his character of transparent honesty and by his enthusiasm for the job. He established particularly successful relationships with the new generation of young Africans, training them to take over the day-to-day administration when self-government came to the country”.

But self-government came sooner than expected to Nyasaland, and in 1964 he returned to the UK, together with his wife, Pat, and two young daughters. In partnership with a Cambridge friend he bought a farm in Cornwall, where his son, Christopher (M 80) was born.

However, in 1968 he was forced to sell the farm, since his business partner wanted to sell up and move abroad. John went on to work for the Department of the Environment, living in Chichester & enjoying more leisure & family time than farming afforded – time for boating in the harbour & on the Solent amongst other things. He was also Chairman of The Phoenix Property & Investment Co. Ltd., London.

He was dealt another blow when his wife, Pat, died of leukaemia in 1976 at the age of 40. But happier years followed when he married Bruni in 1981, becoming stepfather to her 2 daughters. They moved into a large house in Sleaford, Lincolnshire, as the two families combined into one large family.

A loving and much-missed husband, father, stepfather and proud grandfather to nine grandchildren.’

The Society extends its deepest sympathy and sincere condolences to John’s family and friends at this difficult time.