SCHOOL OBITUARIES NEWS
hospital, Governor of Anglia Ruskin
Obituaries
University and Norwich University of the Arts.
We are saddened to report the
He was one of the key
death of the following OPs:
businessmen in the establishment of the ‘Cambridge cluster’, which aimed to bridge the benefits from
Richard A King (1947)
the brains of the University with Gary King (1976) writes:
industry. Coming out of this the
Richard was born in 1929 and was
technology companies on the Cambridge Science Park helped
brought up at the Garden House Economics and Geography but
Cambridge become Europe’s
At school, he was a fine 800m
failed the Latin exam so events took
largest technology cluster.
athlete, captain of athletics and
a different course. He answered an
He was involved in some of
later ran for the Army. The only
advertisement in The Sunday Times
these start-ups, some floundered,
acting role he spoke about was
for management trainees with ‘fire
and some succeeded – perhaps the most notable being AVEVA, an
Hotel (now the Cambridge Hotel).
his delight when he was chosen
in their bellies’ and so his career in
to play a role in one of Peter Hall’s
the exciting world of broadcasting
information technology company
productions. Sir Peter Hall told him
began. From his first week delivering
who now are the UK’s largest
years afterwards he had only been
post, he progressed to become Sales
software company and a major
and Marketing Director of Pye Group
global player.
chosen as he had great knees! Just before he left The Perse
Television. Following an advanced
He confessed he never really
in 1947, he was called into the
management programme at Harvard
understood the technology of most
Headmasters' Office and told he
he ran Pye TVT – the world of
of the businesses he was involved
won a National English Speaking
television and outside broadcast
with but clearly knew how to build
Travelling Scholarship to America
vehicles was growing rapidly. He
and lead a good team around
with three boys from other schools.
was then asked to run 24 of the
him. He avidly supported the
Off he went on the Queen Mary,
Pye companies forming Cambridge
development and nurturing of young talent and always had great vision.
on its first trip after serving as a
Electronic Industries, which was
‘hospital’ during the war. Amongst
the first company he floated on the
other adventures he pushed a
London Stock Exchange.
trolley with $20m of gold bullion at
He was always determined to
He was proud to become an Emeritus fellow at Darwin College, Cambridge, and was awarded a CBE
Fort Knox, broadcast from the CBS
retire from whatever he was doing at
studios in the Empire State building,
60 but then wanted to devote some
and ended up having tea with
time to public service so amongst
his wife, three children, seven
President Truman in the Oval Office!
other appointments became Chair
grandchildren and seven great
of Cambridge Health authority,
grandchildren and fondly
and Vice Chair of Addenbrooke’s
remembered by many others.
Richard H Grove (1973)
secretary of the Historical Society.
Rohan D'Souza and Tom Empson
time making a harpsichord for the
(1973) write:
school, alongside Rupert Limentani.
Richard had a place at Gonville and Caius College to read
in 1991 for services to broadcasting. He will be greatly missed by
He also spent much of his free
Richard Hugh Grove, historian,
Richard undertook a BA in
geographer, environmental
Geography at Hertford College,
campaigner and advocate for
Oxford, and followed it up with
interdisciplinary environmentalism,
an MSc in Conservation Science
passed away in the early hours of the
at University College, London. It is
25th of June in Brighton, just a month
tempting, however, to see his formal
short of his 65th birthday.
academic studies as interruptions
Richard joined the Perse Prep
or supplements to an unfolding
in 1962, and left the Upper in 1973.
and wide-ranging programme of
Throughout his time at school he was
personal research, which saw him
involved in many societies, including
immersing himself in various short-
the choir, Perse Players, and was
term and far-flung projects, working
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