Anthony ( Jim ) Tatford (21 Feb 1932 - 20 Jan 2021)

In loving memory of Anthony ( Jim ) Tatford who sadly passed away on 20th January 2021 Unfortunately due to current restrictions the service limit has been reached but the service will be casted on live stream Website

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Anthony “Jim” Tatford 1932-2021

Petersfield lost one of its most popular and well-known residents this month. Anthony George Tatford, known as Jim, passed away peacefully at home on Wednesday 20th January, with his wife Jane by his side.

Born in Bournemouth in 1932, Jim had fond memories of his wartime childhood, spotting planes and collecting shrapnel. He joined the army as a boy soldier in September 1946, and came to Bordon in 1949 as part of the Royal Electrical and Mechanical Engineers. There were two Tonys in the unit in 1946 so the instructor made them toss a coin to decide who got to keep their name. Jim lost, and ended up being Jim for the rest of his army career!

A gun and tank specialist, Jim served all over the world, including Japan, Gibraltar, Borneo, Singapore and Germany. Most notably, he was on duty in Berlin on the very night the Berlin Wall was built. With typical understatement, Jim said it was all rather confusing as no one knew what the Russians were up to!

In 1955, Jim married Mary who became a very supportive army wife. They had two sons, Paul and Andrew, who spent their childhoods in Singapore and Germany before coming to Petersfield for secondary school. By then, Jim had left REME and joined SEME, the School of Electrical and Mechanical Engineers, based in Bordon once more.

A keen competitive marksman, Jim also excelled at badminton and represented the Army on several occasions. He was a devoted biker, and was an active member of the Honda Goldwing Motorcycle Club on his magnificent golden beast! He loved regular cycling and running and completed several half-marathons, including the Great South Run.

Very sadly, Mary passed away in 1987. In 1993, Jim met Jane through his badminton classes and romance blossomed when Jane asked him to help her train for a marathon. When Jane learned that he had a motorbike, she knew he was the man for her! They married in Tucson, Arizona in 1998 and went on to travel all over the world, including Nepal, Jordan, and a tour of Scandinavia on the Goldwing. Jim and Jane shared a love of ballroom dancing and danced five nights a week for many years, including some memorable visits to the Tower Ballroom in the Blackpool Tower. Later on, Jim helped Jane to run her popular Fitness Classes for Over 50s, keeping up with the energetic routines well into his 80s.

It was impossible for Jim to walk down the High Street without being greeted by an acquaintance, which made his stepdaughter Vicky joke that he was the unofficial King of Petersfield. He was a gentleman to the last, modest, generous and full of love for his family. He is survived by Jane, his sons Paul and Andrew, Jane’s children Vicky, Kate and James, and nine grandchildren. His family would like to thank the nurses from the Rosemary Foundation for their incredible support which enabled Jim to stay at home until the very end.