OLLIE - A TRIBUTE FROM A FRIEND

Giving a blow-up Welsh ewe as a wedding present isn’t something most people (or sheep) would consider.

But Ollie wasn’t most people.

Receiving “Nerys” from him seemed as normal as unwrapping a set of saucepans from anyone else.

Hoss was a jester, a prankster, a sharp wit, an entertainer: a very funny man.

Like many comedians, he struggled to come to terms with life’s injustices. Still, playing together in a band, he dismantled my angst-ridden teenage rap lyrics exploring such themes and replaced them with "Captain Birdseye's Fish Fingers.”

"Hey captain!"

"Yes skipper"

"Fancy a Fish?"

"Yes a kipper"

"He slapped me once, he slapped me twice" etc

Arguably, few people strived harder than Ollie to bring fish into mainstream popular culture until Rick Stein in the late 1990s.

Also like many of the best comics, Ollie's humour pushed boundaries. Delivering a driveway full of sand and a replica of the F.A. Cup to a teacher, along with a plethora of other items, possibly crossed the line.

It earned him the admiration of his peers and a caning from the headmaster he stoically claimed was made easier by his years as a foal.

Some of my fondest memories of Ollie were abroad, listening to Pink Floyd in the early hours in Sydney or grimacing through bottles of Pernod while camping in France.

The best, though, were the nights in the village pubs of Kent, his narrow eyes glinting and his opened palms bouncing as if he were gripping a couple of coconuts as he delivered a punch line.

And then there were the long evenings at Daneby Hall - part of the lives of a generation of now 40-somethings.

Ollie was a generous and kind friend to me. He taped the "It's all up for grabs" Arsenal-Liverpool game while I was overseas and, rather than destroying it as many other Reds fans might have, or recording over it with Rainbow, he kept the video for months until I returned.

I will cherish it even more now.

My deepest sympathies go out to his family.

There is a small corner of Singapore upon which tears are falling for you, Ollie.

At least I have Nerys to comfort me.

Grant Clark
April 9, 2008
Singapore