1938 …. Two 5 year olds starting school….
“My name is David William Medford Barnikel .I’m older than you”
“ I’m Brian Ward. I’m bigger than you. And I shall call you Barny”.
And so it remained for the next 75 years. Best Man at my wedding, Godfather to my firstborn, he became virtually one of the family .
Both of us made it to the local grammar school in Thame. Always one of the brightest he quickly forged ahead.
Growing up in Thame, a small country market town, [population then about 4000], our recreation was in and about the countryside, fields, and streams and, a bike ride away, the Chinnor Hills. He never lost that love of the open air, be it walking the dog, tending his garden just being in the countryside.
School holidays included adventures abroad, a rarity in those days. With school-friend Michel Syson, [fluent french], the three of us, in our early teens, tried camping in Brittany . Great success so then embarked on a hitch-hiking trip round France meeting mid-day each day at a cathedral en route to Sete on the south coast where we stayed under canvas in a heat wave for a couple of weeks.
The compulsory two years of National Service at 18 was usually in the Army, sometimes the Royal Air Force. He is the only one I know of who served in the Navy. He was an officer stationed in Hong Kong, cruised around Korea and visited Japan.
After National Service he went on to London University’s School of Oriental and African Studies [SOAS] and I started a traineeship with Unilever ,both of us in London.
We shared digs in Catford and Crouch End.
His degree required him to learn an ancient Chinese language incomprehensible to the Chinese of today. During the last months of his studies he suffered a major loss of sight in one eye.
Typically he was determined to sit his Finals and did so, successfully. It was then established he needed urgent treatment for a detached retina.
David's decision that teaching was to be his career was inspired by his Headmaster at Thame, Hugh Mullens . He took a close interest in some of us and David had personal coaching in a variety of subjects, joined him and others on holiday trips eg to Wales for mountain trekking etc. . They became lifelong friends.
David's teaching career was mainly at a comprehensive school in West London. It was typical that he would make an extra effort with some of his more difficult pupils taking them on summer holidays trips abroad with his campervan and tents. One of his most challenging was exploring the mountains in northern Greece.
He loved travel and photography, especially with friends in Iceland and his slide shows to my family at home were a regular treat.
As were the visits to his hotel ,The Burton Cliff Hotel ,at his beloved Burton Bradstock, memorably when he generously opened it up for my extended family to stay and welcome in the New Year.
Active in the village he co-founded and was Chairman of the Burton Bradstock Allotments Society and was active in the Village Society giving illustrated talks and providing sound recordings about the history of the village, available on its website.
His development of the hotel included attracting special interest groups. One spectacular success was for aspiring photographers with training courses and activity weekends.
Having established in-house photographic facilities, he hosted and participated as a student in a series of professionally tutored City & Guilds photography courses. His own qualifications led to a Licentiate Award by the Royal Photographic Society.
It didn’t stop there. The Bridport Camera Club came into being in 1984 .David Barnikel is featured on its website as “Founding Member and Lifetime President”.
It also describes him as “ a good egg”. ….Indeed yes. His many friends will certainly agree. We will miss him. Brian Ward.
Brian