Geoffrey Francis 'Geoff' Wilson (2 Oct 1940 - 3 Jun 2020)

Geoff Wilson was one of those rare things: a truly individual character. Highly intelligent, he had a deep knowledge of many different subjects and could converse at length about any of them. During his life he always had a love of the natural world, which could be seen in his enthusiasm for animals, plants and his garden as well as in his beautiful detailed paintings of the Lincolnshire landscape. Lincolnshire was in his blood – anyone who heard him recite dialect poetry realised that he had a true ‘ear’ for the old words and inflections no longer in common use. He was a talented mathematician; he also understood many aspects of science and applied them practically to his horticultural interests.

Geoff was born at the King’s Head, Theddlethorpe, on 2nd October 1940. At the time, his mother Peggy and older sister Shirley were living there with Peggy’s in-laws, Granny and Grandad Wilson. His father Frank was away during these early years, a familiar story for so many families at this time of war.

At Theddlethorpe Primary School Geoff met his lifelong friend John Teanby who recollects some of their early adventures below:

‘My first memory of him was in the summer when he would catch wasps and secretly take their stings out, to then let them crawl all over him to the amazement of the rest of the kids. Our childhood together was idyllic. Together we fished the rivers near my house in Saltfleetby, we walked out to the sea scouring the shoreline for anything of interest, we camped in the sand dunes with another dear friend Richard Suddaby and learned to swim in the creeks on an incoming tide. The Wilson’s house was my second home and I was always made welcome there.’ A school photograph of this time shows that Geoff was a handsome and healthy lad, with that distinguishing thatch of thick, dark hair and his mother’s brown eyes.

After the war Geoff’s younger sister Bridget was born and the family left Theddlethorpe for Louth. Geoff went to Kidgate School and after that Louth Boys’ Grammar. Shirley remembers that he sang in the prestigious choir of St James’ church and used to practise the hymns, psalms and formal sung services at home. The Wilsons eventually left Louth in the early 1950s and moved to The Post Office in Utterby, on Grange Lane. Thus began a connection with the village which was to last nearly 70 years.

Although Geoff was not much interested in Shirley’s equestrian activities, she remembers he was adept at catching her naughty pony Brandy, whom she often had to chase round the field with a headcollar in her hand. ‘I think you might be looking for this?’ Geoff would say, handing over the quietly subdued animal. He was a kind older brother too. When he was about 12 years old, Geoff was very keen on planes, and he went along to a local air show taking his five-year-old sister Bridget with him. He had saved up and had a ten-shilling note and some change to fund their day out. Temptation came in the form of a Gloster aeroplane, and there was just enough money to pay for a flight for both Geoff and his little sister. Bridget was sworn to secrecy because Geoff thought their mum would not approve! Sadly, the event was reported to Peggy by a nosy neighbour, but Bridget remembers how thrilled she was to be included in such an adventure. A famous episode in the family history of Geoff’s teenage escapades was that of ‘HMS Tin Bath’. A set of stabilisers made of wooden planks was applied to the humble household object and Geoff successfully launched her into the pond in their field….. A photograph shows the intrepid captain afloat in his trusty vessel.

Though best friend John reports he was always “odd” at Grammar school and was known as the Mad Professor, he was still one of the ‘Gang’ and was appreciated greatly for assisting with maths homework. Not surprisingly, due to his remarkable memory, Geoff could recite these school years in the most minute detail.

After leaving school he went to work in the aircraft industry at Hawker Siddeley, Brough, as an engineer building planes. He then took up teaching and became a secondary school Maths teacher at Havelock School in Grimsby. His mathematics colleagues soon recognised his incredible grasp of the subject along with much more advanced aspects, such as quantum physics. Not that he taught that to his pupils!

John recalls:
‘He had returned to live with his Mum and Dad in Utterby and bought himself an extremely powerful BMW motor bike in order to get to school. This increased his street cred with his pupils to a high level.’ Geoff’s unique teaching style and sense of humour made him a big hit with the students but, unfortunately, he found other aspects of working in a large secondary school very stressful and had to finish teaching and retire, aged just 45.

This early retirement from the classroom meant that Geoff was able to develop his other interests, particularly gardening. He was never that keen on growing vegetables (or tending his Dad’s chickens!), preferring to focus on specific types of flowering plants. It was in his nature to research topics and become immersed in them and he became a national expert on Irises. He developed and grew his unique iris collection some of which were recognised and registered by the British and American Iris Societies. He even took a trip to a like - minded American friend in Texas to observe her method of growing Irises in the desert. For many years he also developed an expertise in growing alpines, and his parents’ garden benefited enormously from his enthusiasm and input. He was a familiar figure offering advice and information on the days when Frank and Peggy opened their garden to the public. The smaller plot at Geoff’s bungalow next door was a useful area for propagation and experimenting with unusual plantings.

As well as gardening, Geoff liked to speak at length on subjects that excited him, or declaim in Shakespearean fashion to anyone who would listen. That was why he became a brilliant speaker, in Lincolnshire Dialect, for the ‘Far-welter’d’ Society in Louth, who organise literary events where people can come and listen to readings. Geoff loved Tennyson’s dialect poetry and also liked to compose his own, quite humorous, examples of the genre.

Geoff’s life changed when his Mum died and he stayed with his Dad for a number of years. It was sometimes difficult to know who was looking after who but Geoff was always there for his Dad. He was a loyal son. When his father too passed away Geoff moved into his bungalow permanently. Helped by his family and close friends, he adjusted to a different life. Living on his own was a new experience for him and he survived by planning and executing changes to his garden with great skill and fortitude. His characteristic single-mindedness meant that the bungalow was not given the same attention: however, John and Maria Teanby did eventually manage to persuade him to make some home improvements! He was able to lose himself in his garden and through this made friends in the gardening world through Pottertons nurseries, Bob and Ann Armstrong and members of the local Alpine Society. Unfortunately, he developed heart disease and had to have a by-pass operation. He found recovery difficult and so went to stay with Maria and John for a month whilst recuperating. Thankfully, his younger sister Bridget came to see him often and was able to give them a bit of respite by taking Geoff for long walks!

Many people knew Geoff as a painter of wonderful Lincolnshire scenes. He experimented with many different media and his pictures were bought by a loyal public who appreciated his faithful depiction of a unique landscape. Geoff was his own biggest critic and always sought to improve his artistic skills: the meticulous detail in his work was derived from many years of close observation. This attention to detail was in contrast to his own appearance which could be slightly shambolic at times, especially when engrossed with one of his passions. Towards the end of his life he enjoyed applying his artistic talent to different landscapes. Visiting his sister Shirley in West Devon gave him the opportunity to experiment with painting the hills and tors of Dartmoor – a far cry from the gentle contours and vast skies of the Lincolnshire Wolds. Encouraged by John and Maria, he also visited Richard Suddaby in Scotland and was inspired by the marvellous highland scenery and famous west coast gardens.

A special mention should be made of Geoff’s love of dogs, particularly golden retrievers. The simple, unconditional devotion of his canine companions, and his care for them, was a very important part of his life. As well as his own pets, he sponsored dogs awaiting re-homing and was a generous supporter of The Dogs’ Trust. He would have been very happy to see this charity nominated for donations in his memory.

Around two years ago Geoff was diagnosed with lung disease and gradually he became less independent. He bore his illness bravely and was hugely appreciative of those who cared for him.
His sense of humour was ever present and although increasingly frail, his essential character shone through to the end.

What you leave behind is not what is engraved in stone monuments, but what is woven into the lives of others. – Pericles

Addendum
These thoughts have been sent by Geoff's dear friend Richard Suddaby:

GEOFF WILSON - A FRIEND FOR LIFE.

Geoff was a great friend of mine. As far as I recall we first met shortly before both starting at Louth Grammar School in 1951 , having both moved to the village of Utterby fairly recently. We waited for the school bus ( Grayscroft Coaches ? ) beneath the horse chestnut tree at the corner of Church Lane and thus began a long-term friendship. School days were good, particularly for Geoff who was a much more punctilious scholar than I, but out of school we enjoyed the freedom to roam and get up to all kinds of adventures with home-made boats to fall out of, large model aeroplanes with 2.5 cc engines which we pursued relentlessly over hill and dale until the fuel ran out, cricket on the village green, tree climbing, fishing and cycling to Saltfleetby , on the coast . Geoff was very inventive and clever. Although his scholarly appearance earned him the sobriquet of "Professor" he was in fact a strong , adventurous boy and thus an ideal ,staunch friend and companion. John Teanby, Geoff's oldest friend lived in Saltfleetby ,and the three of us enjoyed time spent camping in the dunes and swimming in the tidal creeks. We were very self-sufficient and this youthful search for adventure surely stood us in good stead in later years.

Time passed and we went our separate ways. Geoff stayed in Lincolnshire .After working as an engineer at Blackburn Aircraft in Brough he became a Mathematics teacher in Grimsby. He was a brilliant mathematician and, I think, an excellent teacher ,but the pressures of the job saw him retiring early and concentrating on a horticultural career. He became very well known internationally for his work with irises and, later with alpines. His garden was an absolute delight, filled with botanical treasures. He knew every leaf on every plant and enjoyed showing friends the numerous little marvels that he had grown. However, his traumatic experiences in the teaching profession, as well as caring for his ageing father for many years and an ongoing series of medical problems made life more difficult for him as the years passed.

Fortunately he had John Teanby and John's wife Maria living not too far away and they helped him to cope and enjoy life as much as possible. With their support he enjoyed further interests such as his Lincolnshire Dialect Society membership (he was much in demand as a public speaker) and his painting(he was an excellent artist ).Visits from his sister Bridget gave him another link with the outside world.

Throughout the years I didn't see as much of Geoff as I would have liked, although we kept up a good correspondence and I managed to get to Lincolnshire most years, when we would arrange a visit. All our meetings were marked by the instant quirky humour which was very typical of him. It was so good to have him stay with us here in North-East Scotland for a couple of weeks. We were blessed with a marvellous spell of weather and enjoyed excursions to coast and mountain with a bit of botanising in the mix. I know he very much enjoyed his visit but sadly it was to be his first and last. He also, I know, stayed with his elder sister Shirley in Devon and he was very excited about that excursion also. Having him here with us was like a seamless extension of our boyhood days , an interrupted conversation that has recommenced where we just left off. He had an incredible memory for detail - an extraordinary ,humorous, intelligent, unique individual. I never saw him to be an old man - his thoughts and ideas were those of keen brain and a continuing search for knowledge despite physical limitations. The thought of his memory makes me smile. It was a great privilege to have known him.

Best wishes, Richard Suddaby.