Tributes paid to former Northampton Chron chief photographer Bob

Bob, who was aged 82, was with the Chron for 39 years until his retirement in August 1997.

Colleagues remember him as a brave and kind man , who was always up for any job the newsdesk could throw at him.

Former colleague Derek Holden, who penned the John Grosvenor column for many years said: “Bob was a popular member of staff at this newspaper for many years.

“He had entered the newspaper industry in his native North West. Over the years he carried out hundreds of assignments, mostly local, but others which hit the headlines nationally. “

Bob, who lived for many years in Beech Avenue, Abington, was a great source of anecdotes, with some of the better ones arising from his revered sports coverage.

Aside from angling - at which he was a master - Bob liked nothing better than covering Northants, but his decades of familiarity with the County Ground meant he sometimes forgot the pitch was not his personal office.

Once, while working during a first class game and unable to make out how many runs had been scored, he simply stepped over the boundary onto the outfield and took a snap of the scoreboard, to the bemusement of spectators and players

And journalists still talk about the time that Bob went one step further and actually asked the players to recreate a piece of action he had missed.

Former colleague Graham Tebbutt said: “Legend has it that he needed a close-up of a shot of the action at the wicket but he’d mistakenly brought the wrong lens.

“Not one to be beaten easily, he asked the umpire if he’d allow the players to go over the crucial ball again.

“Apparently, the batsman said he’d do it but only if it was guaranteed he couldn’t be out in the re-run. He got the picture.”

The Chron archives show Bob was often in our news pages too.

He caused an evacuation of an art exhibition at Cottesbrooke Hall when his flash set off the fire alarms.

He also appealed to readers for the return of his camera in 1991 after the trusty Rolleiflex he had bought in the 1950s was stolen from his car. He was still using it for Chron jobs at the time.

Bob was made redundant in 1997 but continued to be a familiar face around Northampton for years, along with his wife, Dot.

He eventually moved from Abington to Bedford, where he passed away recently in hospital.

His funeral was held yesterday at Bedford Crematorium.

Former Chron news editor Pete Clarke said: “He was always up for any unusual assignments, whether it was going up huge buildings or doing aerial shots. He was fearless.”