ROBERT “BOB” DOUGLAS TAPSFIELD (1926 – 2025); ‘A’ House 1939 - 1944

Bob Tapsfield was very much a family man; indeed, his fond memories of Bradfield grew from his strong sense of its place in our family history. His grandfather taught there in the 1850s and was noted for his fine bass voice – probably why Thomas Stevens appointed him. His father and three uncles attended in the 1880s. I followed in the 1960s.

Bob had a high regard for his headmaster, John Hills. He recalled seeing him in chapel, at the height of the war, patriotic tears rolling down his cheeks as the school sang "I Vow to Thee, My Country".

After Bradfield, Bob went up to Oxford but soon left to join the Navy. After service in the Far East, he was demobbed in 1946. He decided against returning to university, opting instead to try journalism.  After nine years on local papers, on one of which he met his future wife, he joined BBC Radio News.

Bob had a great love for the newsroom, where his sense of humour helped him deal with its many pressures. He liked to say the pinnacle of his career came when a tape went missing as The World at One was going out and his despairing cry was transmitted into the nation’s homes – and reported in The Sun.       

In 1964, Bob visited St Helena. His pieces on Napoleon’s exile were well-received by listeners to Today, and his letter to The Times regarding the age of Jonathan, a giant tortoise, generated an amusing correspondence.

In 1969, Bob went to Guyana for six months as news adviser to the local broadcasting service. He went back in 1980 to report on the republic’s tenth anniversary, only to have all his equipment stolen. But Bob got the job done and his broadcast went out on time.

He was in Brighton for the 1984 Conservative conference when the IRA bombed the Grand Hotel. Bob’s work on that dreadful night was acknowledged by the Radio News Editor, who thanked him for his “outstanding service over many confusing and turbulent hours”. 

Bob later moved into parliamentary broadcasting, for which he and his colleagues won a Sony Radio Award in 1986.

June, Bob’s wife of 71 years, was also a journalist. In retirement, she and Bob enjoyed travelling abroad and pootling about on the River Wey in their narrowboat. They particularly loved spending time with their children and numerous grandchildren and great-grandchildren.

They are greatly missed.

Philip Tapsfield

‘A’ House 1965 – ‘68

Bob Tapsfield (A 39-44) passed away on the 10 February 2025, aged 98.