Gordon and Tony

On 6th July, 2023 I, Tony Heyes, wrote on the Knott End & Preesall Community FaceBook page.......

News has just reached me of the death of my oldest friend, Gordon Heald. Gordon died approximately 50 metres from where we first met; catching crabs in the rock pool at the end of Clarence Avenue, Knott End on Sea , Lancashire. It was 1949, I was 9, Gordon 10. Gordon.had grandparents living in Wyre View. My parents were Country Members of the golf club and we took our family holidays in KE.

Gordon went to Manchester University and became an architect going on to design buildings in far flung places. His greatest triumph was the first tall building in the Persian Gulf. The World Trade Centre in Dubai is now dwarfed by subsequent monsters but it remains Gordon's baby. My career as a scientist meant that for many years our paths did not cross - my move to Australia in 1987 did not help - but we never lost touch. In later years Gordon and Penny spent more and more time at their "beech house" in Knott End rather than their London home and I enjoyed many visits during my frequent trips back from the antipodes.

Gordon was particularly interested in local history. In fact his family, on both sides, played a considerable part in that history. Gordon created a number of detailed historical maps of Over Wyre but never seemed to show them to anyone! I nagged him to let me create a web site to make the maps available to other history buffs. Thus together we created www.OverWyre.info. It is my plan to put in place a mechanism such that this web site will continue to be available.

Tonight I will have a small glass of Famous Grouse in memory of many such shared glasses with my dear old friend.

Gordon is survived by his wife, Penny, son, Julian and daughter, Gael.

NB I subsequently found that Gorden did not die at his home in Beech Grove but had been admitted to hospital in Blackpool. But as Gordon would have agreed, "Why let the truth spoil a good story?"