I was so saddened to hear about the death of an old mate of mine, Fred Dibnah, who I visited at his home in Bolton on many occasions.
This photo shows me with him after he had just completed a journey of about 40 miles on his steam roller at about four miles per hour, hence the state of him and the large glass of Guinness.
Anyone who knew Fred would know what an interesting man he was and if you attended any of his one-man shows, you would have laughed at the numerous yarns he told about his life.
It is particularly sad he should die so early in life because he had so much to finish.
When I last visited him, he showed me the traction engine he was building to add to his varied collection. His garden is like an open-air museum and I hope it can be opened as one.
I first met Fred when I made him a scale model of him and one of his chimneys. I have since made him six more, all depicting stages of felling a chimney and the repairing of a chimney.
He was delighted with these and displayed them in his front windows for all to see.
For me, the world will now be a sadder place.
Roger Lee,
-Peacehaven
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