Greetings to you all in time and space from Sydney, I am sorry not to be able to give this in person. In these far from ideal circumstances, I just wanted to thank Mum for doing a spectacular job arranging today in this difficult situation - thank you. As a family we have been quite comfortable talking about end of life and funerals. While Dad didn’t mind the subject, he was always less particular about what he wanted for his funeral… The one thing for certain we knew he wanted was a horse drawn hearse. However with added pandemic related complications and the long journey on the A1 to Knebworth it wasn’t possible. Perhaps it’s fitting that we haven’t broken the long standing family tradition and given you your own way…. Sorry Dad. Through the years I’ve slowly realised how incredibly lucky I am to have a Dad that didn’t mind - nay - treasured looking after his little girl. Although he never quite got to grips with doing my hair... his invented technique of lifting me into tights compared to conventional methods pales in comparison and might answer why I refused to wear trousers for my formative years. I remember thinking how strange it was that everyone was picked up from Primary school by their Mums and feeling a bit sorry for the other children that didn’t have as nearly as lovely a Daddy as mine. As I grew up that bond continued… We used to have what he called ‘special Daddy and girlie’ time which usually consisted of breakfast on Saturday morning in St.Albans (he would have a full English and I would have a toasted teacake) followed by buying lots of cheese at the Saturday morning market from Dave Harris. As my family (likely correctly) jokes, I was utterly spoilt by Dad - every whim was indulged; surprise presents in his car glove box, last minute trips to buy gel pens mentioned on an eleventh-hour Santa’s letter, new dinners cooked if I didn’t like the one he’d made and latterly giving me his car to use while on university placement in the Norfolk countryside. Once he had the Gabbutt water garden shop empire up and running and was a fully fledged fish tycoon those weekend trips were less possible while he was growing the business he was so proud of. Instead I had the occasional days working with him at the shop (on my part not very hard and which 9am - 6pm spanned an eternity) and we enjoyed some lovely holidays such as trips to the Whitby Folk festival (courtesy of Sam, Liz and the Grevel family). This included dinner every night at the Magpie cafe, dance workshops and staying up too late at concerts together. Another more recent holiday was for Dad’s 60th Birthday. We had a trip to stay in a tiger lodge at Port Lyme - where he really enjoyed sitting in an armchair and watching the tigers from the living room. For his 60th I also gave him tickets for us both to see Elton John (I know, oldest trick in the book). Dad kept giving me different Elton John compilation albums to the point where the only CDs in the car were different ‘Best Of’ albums. At this point I’m not even sure whether either of us liked Elton John or whether we just thought the other did. I am sad to say we are still waiting to see Elton as the tickets were for December this year… They were at the O2 so I hope he will get a better view from up there! So I guess I’ll end by saying I’m so grateful to have had such a wonderful Dad. He was an avid hobbyist; tropical fish and Killifish club chairman (I to this day can’t smell rising damp without being taken to his fish cellar), gardening, amazing inter-continental cooking, morris dancing, games playing…. I’m trying to keep some of the tradition by having a succulent collection spanning two continents and getting my spice collection to rival his. It's hard to explain to people who didn’t know him before his stroke about his teasing good humour and the zest he had. In later years his hobbies had evolved… still cooking up a feast on occasion but with the occasional complete carbonisation (smoke alarms and burnt toast was a feature of my childhood), studying the Big Bang Theory, big feminist supporter of the England’s lionesses football team, extreme coffee drinker, serial holidayer, carer to Dora the cat who spent most of her time on his lap and lead member of the Lady Maisery folk singing fan club which you will hear some of their music today. I can’t tell you how heart broken I am to lose him. No one will quite be able to live up him… (Sorry Neil)