Cyril Nippard (20 Jan 1927 - 16 Feb 2021)

EULOGY

On behalf of Claire and myself I would like to thank you for attending this remembrance service for Cyril Nippard. We would also like to thank everyone who posted such kind words on his obituary page. It means a great deal to us to know he was such a well-regarded relative, friend and ex colleague.

The obituary web page contains a comprehensive biography of his life and I will therefore not repeat it in this eulogy.

How do you describe our dad – it is not easy. He was a bit of a Jekyll and Hyde character. He could be cantankerous, intolerant, impatient, intransigent, frugal and rude. However, conversely he was generous, humorous, engaging company and devoted. On balance the endearing qualities easily outweigh the negative ones and that is how I will choose to remember him.

Although he was not one for showing great emotion he loved our mum very much and sorely missed her when she was taken from us last year. Similarly, with his children and grandchildren he did not overtly demonstrate affection but there is no question that it was present in abundance.

Dad used to enjoy his whiskey, snooker on the TV, and gardening particularly when they lived West Way. He was a keen walker and would go out most days, usually to Throop. Mum also liked his daily walks as she would have some peace and quiet for two hours.

Once dad retired, he loosened the purse strings, and they had some wonderful holidays together. I recently came cross a handwritten list of those holidays together with their dates and you will not be surprised to hear also their cost.

Mum and dad frequently played scrabble and my mum would win at least 90% of the time. However, dad would never admit that mum was the better player – she was always luckier when it came to picking the letters out of the bag!! I once told mum that dad had recently called to tell me he had won at scrabble. Mum thought for a moment and said, “if you rang Paul every time you won that would not add much to the cost of our telephone bill”.

Throughout his life Dad had a very strong bond with his 9 siblings and always made himself available to provide counsel to them and also their families. His one major regret in life was that he never fulfilled his wish to go to New Zealand to see his brother, two sisters and their families.

As you know Dads’ second family was the Police Service and he was justifiably proud of his achievements over a long and distinguished career. Many of his colleagues subsequently turned out to be very close friends and I know that he very much enjoyed the comradery of his fellow police officers. When he retired he became a member of the National Association of Retired Police Officers. The regular meetings and other communications became an integral part of his retired life. Even when he was no longer capable of physically attending meetings the welfare officers still visited, wrote to him and rang him to ensure that he was still part of the club. This continued up to his death and we are extremely grateful for this interaction

Many of mum and dads circle of friends were police colleagues and their wives but there were notable additions. In particular his best friend and reciprocal best man Peter Sutton and his wife Elspeth. Mary Cordell was another close friend and when mum and dad’s health stated to fail Mary was an invaluable source of assistance to them and we thank her for that.

During our childhood Dad’s work meant he often worked at nights and for long hours, particularly when he was involved in a murder investigation. As mum did not drive this did mean that when I played football I was often without parental representation on the touchline. At the time I used to begrudge this however I have since reflected on those memories and agree it was far better for him to be locking up criminals and murderers than freezing his nuts off whilst he watched me score yet another own goal. In her later years one of mums stock questions was “did you have a happy childhood” and I often used to quote this as probably the one example of when I was a bit miffed. She always agreed and once told me that she was always amazed how many crimes dad could solve whilst he was in the Police Social Club drinking whiskey.

Many people do not know this but our Dad was a manual prototype for the modern Satnav systems. Whenever you drove him anywhere in the Poole and Bournemouth area the procedure was always the same. You were given detailed pre departure instructions on which route you would be taking - even if you had done the journey many times before. During the journey you would receive turn by turn instructions, very audible warnings if you exceeded the speed limit and many traffic advisories which included the possible forthcoming manoeuvres by every vehicle in front of you, bus stops, traffic lights and pelican crossings. And you did not have to pay a subscription for the service, it was entirely free.

Dad thought he was a good driver and frequently told everyone that he had an advanced police driver qualification. All I can say is that the taxpayer should have been refunded the cost of the training. Even when he was in his 50’s he used to don his flat cap and leather gloves and join the thousands of other like minded motorists who tootled around Bournemouth. These were the same motorists who were never involved in any accidents themselves but caused thousands. I have always regarded those road signs with red circles and numbers in them as advisory – when dad was driving he regarded them as mandatory – 10 mph, indeed he would have struggled to keep up with the hearse travelling here today.

Unlike my sisters, who were always naughty, dad very rarely had cause to lose his temper with me although I do recall one occasion when he did. Dad was a keen gardener and took great pride in his flower beds. One morning when we used to live in West Way I was lying in bed with a moderate hangover and he stormed into my bedroom and said – “Did you drive home last night after you had too many beers” I mumbled something like “Maybe” and he said, “There is nothing maybe about it – look out of the window”. I looked out of the window and whilst I had manged to keep 75% of the car on the driveway the remaining 25% was parked in one of his beloved flower beds!

I think everyone who knew my dad would agree that political correctness and diversity was a largely alien concept to him and we would be here for hours if we recollected every instance of non PC behaviour. However, one consistent theme was the unsolicited dietary advice he used to offer anyone who he perceived had put on a few pounds. He also once handcuffed his granddaughter Emma to a radiator to demonstrate that they were fully functional. Fortunately, he still had the key.

The last year of dad’s life certainly did not go as we had planned. Our mum passed away, he relocated to the Sweyne Court care home in Rayleigh and then Covid came along which significantly impacted both the quality and quantity of contact with his family. Despite Covid we would like to thank the staff at Sweyne Court who did their very best to keep his spirits up, provide a high standard of care and facilitate as much contact as was permitted by the government guidelines.

 
We had a positive start to 2021 with dad receiving his first vaccination and having a very nice 94th birthday. We all thought this would be turning point and were optimistic about what lay ahead for the forthcoming months, particularly increased physical contact, picnics, taking him out into Rayleigh and possibly a visit to our house. How wrong we were. Within a few weeks he had been admitted to hospital, contracted Covid whilst in hospital and subsequently died without the solace of any family around him. A very sad ending to a long and rewarding life.

Rest in Peace Dad.

BIOGRAPHY

Dad was born on the 20th January 1927 and was the fourth child of 10. He was the first one to be born at his parents new house, 38 Cynthia Road, Poole, Dorset.

He attended Branksome Heath Primary School, and later Kemp Welch Boys Secondary School becoming Head Boy between the years 1941-1942

Dad left school at 14 yrs old and went to work for the Bournemouth Times and Directory as an Apprentice Compositor [type setting]. However, he did not find this work to his liking, and left to work as a Negotiator for W.P.J. Millers Estate Agents.

On the 1 st February 1945 at 18 yrs old dad joined the Army and gained his wings as a glider pilot in the Glider Pilot Regiment. This was a regiment within the Army Air Corps. He served at numerous R. A. F. stations in the United Kingdom , and the last six months of his service in Goslar in Germany. He was discharged on the 28th February 1948 with the rank of Sergeant and received the following medals for his service: Defence Medal, and the War Medal 1939-1945

In May 1948 dad joined the Bournemouth Borough Police. After an initial training period he spent five years on uniform duties before moving to CID where he remained until his promotion to Sergeant in 1960. From 1960 until 1963 he again undertook uniform duties after which he moved back to CID. He was promoted Inspector in 1973 and took up duties in the Special Squad. In 1974 he returned to CID at Poole and in October was promoted to Chief Inspector.

During his service he worked on Operation Country, an investigation into corruption in the Metropolitan and City of London Police. This was the most challenging and interesting part of his distinguished career. In 1962 he was awarded the Police Long Service and Good Conduct Medal. On the 6th February 1977 he was awarded the Queens Silver Jubilee Medal.

After retiring from the Police in 1979, he was appointed Crime Prevention Officer. This gave him the distinction of being the last civilian Crime Prevention Officer in Dorset.

Dad entered permanent retirement in 1987 and pursued his passions of walking and holidays.

Dad married our mum 29th March 1952 and they subsequently had 3 children, Paul, Denise and Claire. These children provided mum and dad with 5 grand children and 3 great children.

In the latter part of his life Dad’s mobility suffered and he was eventually confined to a wheelchair. For the last 2 years of his life his deteriorating health also necessitated him moving into care homes, firstly in Bournemouth and latterly in Rayleigh Essex.