Born:
15 September 1923 and died 18 September 2007.
Son of: Rev
Raymond Audley Dunbar Heath (1884-1962) and Vera Heath (nee
Greatrex, 1889-1969).
Brother of:
1. Rosemary Barbara Heath (born 1928).
Anthony married:
in 1952 Syliva Wilson (born 1926).
Anthony and Sylvia had issue:
1. Erica Vera Middleton nee Heath (born
1954) who married John Francis Middleton (born 1949).
2. David Oriel Heath (born 1958) who
married Denise Norden (born 1959).
3. Raymond Penkivil Greatrex Heath (born
1963) who married Mary Kate Boxall (born 1964).
Anthony Greatrex Dunbar Heath: An Overview
The following biography of Anthony's life is written by his son Raymond.
Born 15 September 1923, Anthony (Tony) lived in Hampstead, London for three years. At that time his father, Raymond Heath, worked at Perkins Bacon & Co., the first postage stamp firm in the world. In 1927 the family moved to The Dell, Sawbridgeworth, Herts. On 9 May 1928 Rosemary Barbara Heath, Tony's sister was born.
Tony attended Harlow College. From age 13 he attended Haileybury College, Hertford where his cousin Cecil Greatrex had previously been. Tony's main interest was music and he used to play the piano and clarinet.
In 1939, as World War II broke out, he was called for national service and underwent basic training at Thirsk. He was subsequently selected for the Royal Corps of Signals and went to Birmingham to learn teleprinting. Following training, he was sent on a ship to Algiers.
Tony did not enjoy his time much in Algiers but learnt the basic trade of bartering. He used to sell his free issue of cigarettes and use the money to watch the arts, which consisted mainly of films. Tony then went to Naples. He went out frequently to watch an opera, play, or film or simply to play the piano or clarinet. He used to spend a lot of time composing on the piano. Tony probably enjoyed his time the most in Italy and stayed there until the War was over. After the war, Tony completed his national service by visiting India, Singapore and finally Germany.
On returning to civilian life, Tony studied horticulture at the Essex Institute of Agriculture, Writtle. Here he met his future wife, Sylvia Jessica Wilson. They were married at Takeley, Essex, in 1952. After working as a fruit farm manager, Tony qualified as a teacher and taught Rural Science in Essex and Lincolnshire. He then lectured in the cultivation of fruit at Ely.
His wife and three children moved to Hampshire in 1966 when he took up the position of Advisor in Fruit with the Ministry of Agriculture Fisheries and Food. He retired in 1983.
During his retirement he travelled a lot visiting places like Russia, Norway, Czech Republic and USA always in search of art. He was a supporter of many art galleries and sculpture parks. He also appreciated architecture and churches.
He was a very keen photographer both still and video and was an Associate of the Royal Photographic Society (ARPS). This was his biggest hobby that lasted over 40 years.
He died of heart failure on 18 September 2007. His ashes have been scattered over his parents' grave at Takeley.
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