Univ Record 2017

cultivated his strong roots in Wales, pursuing lifelong commercial and political interests
in his native Carmarthenshire and neighbouring Ceredigion. He was a fluent exponent
of the Welsh language and constant champion of its use.
Blessed with a prodigious memory, OJ had a sharp eye for inconsistency and a
finely honed wit. These assets combined to make him a formidable legal opponent, a
shrewd politician and a convivial, remarkable friend. He was a stubborn defender of his
principles, and had an instinctive attraction to the underdog (which partly explained
his fondness for some sentimental Country and Western music). He generally eschewed
physical exercise – he occasionally ran after a taxi – but followed the Welsh rugby team
and The Sport of Kings enthusiastically, actively participating in the latter as a successful
racehorse owner and breeder.
OJ was a loyal supporter of Univ, and regularly returned – once too often, possibly,
when he mistakenly but memorably attended a rowers’ reunion dinner. It was my good
fortune to share some very happy times with him – whether following disappointingly
slow racehorses all over the country, or being entertained by maudlin American musicians
in stetson hats. It was never dull, and his many friends and loving family will miss him
greatly.
1970
RICHARD NEIL ROXBURGH (Bede Hall Grammar
School, Teesside) died on 5 February 2017 aged
64. Richard’s Univ contemporary Professor Mike
Jackson (1970) has kindly given us this tribute:
Richard read History at Univ. and was awarded
a vacant Open Exhibition on the basis of his first
year’s work. He was fully engaged with College life,
playing rugby, tennis and darts, and broadening
his educational outlook by taking options in art
history and architecture. These interests continued
throughout his life and he was a very active and
cultured man, ending with over 90 Munros to his
name and with a wide ranging knowledge of books,
music, film and politics.
After gaining postgraduate qualifications,
Richard pursued a career in social work and welfare rights, and between 1988 and 2011
was a Welfare Rights Area Manager for Lancashire County Council. He demonstrated
passion and drive in seeking justice for his clients. He was referenced in Parliament
(Hansard, 20 November, 1996) for the excellent service his team provided to the people
of Lancashire. One of his cases, involving the rights of immigrants to benefits, was
decided in the House of Lords.
Richard’s interests away from work included campaigning for the Labour Party,
supporting Middlesborough FC and Yorkshire County Cricket Club, and playing golf.
He was close to his brother Eddie and his family and in 2016, while terminally ill,
undertook a 5 km run with him to raise money for bowel cancer research. It is pleasing
to report that Richard found true happiness in the last 20 or so years of his life with his
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soul-mate Judith. They enjoyed the good things in life, travelled widely and took on new
responsibilities as respite foster carers over two lengthy placements.
Richard always appreciated the education he received at Univ and the privileged life,
as he described it, that he was able to lead as a result. He donated to College funds.
He wanted the opportunities he had had to be available to many more students from
less well-off backgrounds. Over the years he engaged with the College on this matter
on a number of occasions. He would have been pleased to see the launch of the Univ
Opportunity Programme, in 2017, making 10 places a year available to students from
disadvantaged backgrounds. Richard would have regarded it as a small, but welcome step
in the right direction.
1971
DAVID JACKSON BRADSHAW (Sandbach School, Crewe) died on 11 August 2016 aged
63, from the effects of prostate cancer. Tim Warren (1971) has kindly provided this obituary:
At Univ, Dave took a BA in Physics, combined with a parallel course in Table Football.
With an open and bubbly personality, he put energy and enthusiasm into everything he did,
including volunteering for the listening and support service Nightline from its earliest days
in Oxford, and going round the women’s colleges on his bicycle, visiting a truly impressive
number of female friends. One of our contemporaries wrote to say how warm and welcoming
Dave was when they were both new at Univ.
He loved rock music, especially Pink Floyd. He played guitar and he’d built his own huge
speakers, which made the Goodhart Building floor vibrate. He was wont to go on at length
about their ‘bass response’, to the bewilderment of us mere mortals who hadn’t yet moved on
from the tinny Dansette-style record players.
After an MSc in Physics & Cryogenics at Southampton – and rather to the surprise of
those of us who affectionately remembered his proficiency at spelling – he became editor of an
electronics journal, and then a researcher at the Consumer Association’s Which? magazine.
Moving to Ovum, a research and consulting business working in IT, telecoms and media, he
became a VP, and a renowned expert in databases and database software. As part of this, he
moved to Cambridge, Massachusetts, to run the office there.
In 2008, he joined IDC, a competitor of Ovum, and in line with the rapidly-evolving
technology scene, reinvented himself to focus on cloud computing, becoming known across
the industry for his expertise in that field as well.
Dave was proud of his ordinary roots in Holmes Chapel, Cheshire, and the fact that he
had made it to Oxford. A committed Labour Party supporter, he was very active in his local
area of Brixton, London, including helping Helen Hayes in her successful bid to be elected
for Dulwich and West Norwood in 2015.
Marrying Genqin Yan (Qing) in 1996, Dave delighted in his late-flowering family life,
including his Chinese connections. With his son William arriving when Dave was 46, he
also treasured the close relationship they developed, and William’s shared interest in physics
and IT.
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