Robin, Nicky and Lucy, and practised magic alone in his bedrooms in Ashburn Place and Sloane Court West. He was, of course, later to become an accomplished and hilarious conjuror, performing at parties and schools; and even playing twice nightly for 10 nights only in that famous venue, the Toby Jug in Albufeira. His stage name: Houdini the Hud. He was also to become a purveyor of exceptional schoolboy education, but then he had been an exceptional schoolboy himself. Blossoming socially at Marlborough House Prep, this only child went on to captain Tonbridge for Cricket, Rugby and Boxing (the last tells us something of the steeliness of this apparently frangible man). From a “Nasty Novi”, he grew into a conscientious academic enthusiast, a superb Head Boy and fine leader. However, it was Grenoble University, before he went up to Lincoln, that proved to be his most important sojourn. During six months of intensive French, it was there that “love’s young dream” was born. Huddy fell totally for an attractive and lively girl, Liz Willis. As for Liz? She had already told her father, pointing to Huddy, “That is the man I want to marry.” They exchanged vows 5 years later. Huddy made Liz laugh and continued to make her laugh through their 52 years together. While Liz was the practical one of the two, she sorted out the cars, it’s not unfair to say that, in this area, Huddy was hopeless. In so many aspects of their lovely lives together they complemented each other – ying and yang – and we were the beneficiaries. And together they made us laugh. Only Huddy could walk into ‘Singletons’ the Estate Agent and announce “I’d like a love-nest – but one to share with my middle-aged wife”. Only he could then choose a completely impractical dwelling, ‘The Boathouse’. And only Liz could make his impracticality work – using a wheelbarrow on the path to and from the front door. As a couple, they were a force far more colossal than the sum of its parts.
It was a combination that made for the most incredible parents. We, his charges, were lucky enough to be “temporarily parented” by them – and have memories of the two of them teaching us a variety of life skills from dinner party conversational etiquette to rock and roll in the Octagon (using furniture as partners if there were too many boys for Liz, Nicky and Lucy); from an appreciation of Burgundy to our behaviour towards girls – and their mothers! Women loved Huddy – for he was an attentive listener. And he loved women. But Liz was always “the only girl for him”. “Ant” – she could call him that – was devoted and touchingly generous, only months ago giving his “Lizzie” a beautiful diamond ring in the shape of this Chapel to encapsulate his love for her for ever.
His love for his family was also unbounded, and his support and belief in his children was unfaltering. He regretted, however, that, in their early years, he couldn’t give his children that much needed currency, time, because, as ever, his duty and his pupils came first. Such was his strength as a father (coupled with Liz’s unstinting support) that the children never felt hard done by. It is now, however, that he should have been spending time with them and his lovely grandchildren, Nicky and Mark’s: Sophie, George and Oliver – Robin and Sylvie’s: Zoe and Emma – and Lucy and Brian’s: Ella and Guy. Meeting Liz meant he declined an invitation at Oxford to become a spy – a fortunate decision for thousands of Radleians and Pangbournians he taught the old radleian 2015
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