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A man who helped and championed Haverhill Drama Competition at a national level was the victim of a tragic boating accident on the River Thames at New Year.

Dr Rex Walford is still missing after he fell from a boat carrying six passengers from a river island dinner party to shore in pitch darkness on Sunday, January 2.

The Cambridge University Lecturer, a former vice-president of the Royal Geographical Society, and his wife Wendy had been guests of lifelong friend Keith Lowde at his £700,000 home on Pharaoh’s Island near Shepperton, Surrey.

Mr Lowde, 66, a music industry executive, who was at the tiller of the small fibreglass boat Minoru when it capsized in the dark just 50 yards from the shore, drowned in the accident.

The close friends were with their wives and another couple when the tragedy occurred.
Two other women and a third man all managed to scramble to the river bank and were treated in hospital.

It is believed that Mr Lowde, whose body was found by divers next day, may have gone back to try to save Dr Walford, who was a non-swimmer.

Dr Walford, who had been visiting the Lowdes for a New Year celebration meal, had a wealth of qualifications including a Master’s degrees from Cambridge University, a doctorate in Geography and a degree in Economics.

In 2000 he was awarded an OBE for his services to geography in the New Years Honour’s List.

But it was as a drama adjudicator that Dr Walford was best known in Haverhill. He was a former chairman of the Guild of Drama Adjudicators (GODA) and his pithy and good-humoured adjudications were much enjoyed by local actors.

He was also a strong supporter of Haverhill Arts Centre and a regular attender at events there in recent times.

He helped the Haverhill Town Council arts and leisure manager Nick Keeble establish the annual drama festival at a national level, and championed it around the country.

He adjudicated it twice and helped find adjudicators on a couple of other occasions when one had dropped out.

"It is a real tragedy," said Mr Keeble. "Rex was very helpful and he always talked well of Haverhill everywhere."