Off Topic And Now for Something Completely Different

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Chazz Rheinhold said:
Brought a lump to my throat. Letter read out on test match special.

'My dad, John Taylor, had, unlike the current England batting line-up, dug in and battled doggedly to reach 83.

'He built gradually through his fifties as a true gentleman, a pharmacist, sportsman and father of two boys until the unexpected cloud cover descended just as he was looking to break free from the shackles and play with the freedom that retirement would bring.

'On an ever-increasingly "sticky wicket", he faced up and defended against a beamer in the form of Leukemia, the yorker of muscular dystrophy, the googly of Parkinson's, the reverse swing of diabetes and latterly was struck down by the vicious bouncer of dementia.

'But like fellow Yorkshireman Brian Close, he never winced, complained or succumbed to the temptation of amateur dramatics.

'He just accepted the cards he had been dealt and squeezed every last drop out of life that he could on a single-by-single basis with his amazing care team acting as runners.

'On 83, dad finally faced the inevitable unplayable delivery and left the field of play.

'I use the cricket analogy because TMS has been and will continue to be an institution of great importance to generations of our family.

'I remember as a boy, listening to the Ashes in Australia under my bed covers with a torch on at silly o'clock until dad finally lost patience and reminded me that it was school in the morning.

'My granddad was blind and TMS was by far his favourite form of entertainment. So it proved for dad, particularly when he was virtually bed-bound and it was always great to hear his infamous laugh as the team dished out its plentiful helpings of wit and repartee.

'However, most importantly, you managed to allow me to say goodbye to him properly just before his passing.

'Dad was rushed to hospital on Thursday, August 9 with another bad chest infection. On Friday, we were told that he had 24 to 48 hours to live and that. in fact, he may never regain consciousness.

'On the Saturday, I visited dad in hospital with my wife and after an hour she had the inspirational idea of getting Test Match Special on my mobile.

'After five minutes he opened his eyes and he was completely "in the room" and aware of us.

'He was able to convey that he was comfortable, he was at peace and I was able to tell him what a wonderful father he is and just how much I love him.

'Not one comfortable with massive shows of emotion, after 15 minutes he requested that we listen to the cricket.

'For three hours we listened to Woakes crashing it about at Lord's and making his maiden Test century.

'We got a digital into dad's hospital room and he listened to Test Match Special the next day and I don't think that it is any coincidence that he passed peacefully just after England had sealed victory.'
Click to expand...
Puts things into perspective.
 
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Chazz Rheinhold said:
Brought a lump to my throat. Letter read out on test match special.

'My dad, John Taylor, had, unlike the current England batting line-up, dug in and battled doggedly to reach 83.

'He built gradually through his fifties as a true gentleman, a pharmacist, sportsman and father of two boys until the unexpected cloud cover descended just as he was looking to break free from the shackles and play with the freedom that retirement would bring.

'On an ever-increasingly "sticky wicket", he faced up and defended against a beamer in the form of Leukemia, the yorker of muscular dystrophy, the googly of Parkinson's, the reverse swing of diabetes and latterly was struck down by the vicious bouncer of dementia.

'But like fellow Yorkshireman Brian Close, he never winced, complained or succumbed to the temptation of amateur dramatics.

'He just accepted the cards he had been dealt and squeezed every last drop out of life that he could on a single-by-single basis with his amazing care team acting as runners.

'On 83, dad finally faced the inevitable unplayable delivery and left the field of play.

'I use the cricket analogy because TMS has been and will continue to be an institution of great importance to generations of our family.

'I remember as a boy, listening to the Ashes in Australia under my bed covers with a torch on at silly o'clock until dad finally lost patience and reminded me that it was school in the morning.

'My granddad was blind and TMS was by far his favourite form of entertainment. So it proved for dad, particularly when he was virtually bed-bound and it was always great to hear his infamous laugh as the team dished out its plentiful helpings of wit and repartee.

'However, most importantly, you managed to allow me to say goodbye to him properly just before his passing.

'Dad was rushed to hospital on Thursday, August 9 with another bad chest infection. On Friday, we were told that he had 24 to 48 hours to live and that. in fact, he may never regain consciousness.

'On the Saturday, I visited dad in hospital with my wife and after an hour she had the inspirational idea of getting Test Match Special on my mobile.

'After five minutes he opened his eyes and he was completely "in the room" and aware of us.

'He was able to convey that he was comfortable, he was at peace and I was able to tell him what a wonderful father he is and just how much I love him.

'Not one comfortable with massive shows of emotion, after 15 minutes he requested that we listen to the cricket.

'For three hours we listened to Woakes crashing it about at Lord's and making his maiden Test century.

'We got a digital into dad's hospital room and he listened to Test Match Special the next day and I don't think that it is any coincidence that he passed peacefully just after England had sealed victory.'
Click to expand...
Just thought I’d post the video of it being read out if anyone wants to see what watery eyes feel like

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Kempton said:
I'm glad I didn't see that Chazz. If there is one human being I would loved to have a few beers with, it would be Billy Connolly. Very sad indeed.
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Yeah, it is really sad. I got into him through elder brothers when he first emerged via the Parky show. Seems not very long ago at all when he was making quite boring travel documentaries sound interesting.
 
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