John Gant, builder, pilot and accomplished jazz musician

A WELL-KNOWN character around South Oxfordshire and for the last 40 years a familiar figure in Woodcote, John Gant has died at his home, aged 87.

Born in 1935 into a family that had been in Reading for generations, John was surrounded by music from an early age as his mother, Wilhemena Gant, was a successful concert pianist.

After attending Crosfields School in Reading and Radley College in Abingdon, John completed his National Service with the Royal Marines, seeing active service in southern Cyprus.

He married Vivien Christian in 1960. He loved his caravan and travelled widely with his wife and their three children, further nurturing his love for all things cultural.

He was an active member of the local Round Table and then Rotary.

From an early age, John had a passion for flying. He kept a pilot’s licence for many years and hoped to make a career in aviation but the death of his father in 1954 meant that, as the only son able to do so, he was relied on to take over the family business, Gant Builders, based in Portman Road, Reading.

John found the business tough but stayed the course until it closed in the mid-Seventies.

He briefly also ran his mother’s business, Gardiner’s Jewellers, in Friar Street, Reading, after she passed away in 1982.

John developed a deep love of jazz and was an avid drummer, attending local concerts and supporting local jazz musicians.

On settling in Woodcote in 1984, where he was to spend the rest of his life, he set up Broad Street Jazz and frequently performed at Oxfordshire pubs.

With a long-standing and regular gig at the Four Horseshoes in Checkendon, he played with the pick of local jazz musicians, some of them well-known recording artists, such as saxophonist Art Themen.

Left reeling by the sudden death of his wife Vivien in 1992 at the age of 53, John took solace in his dogs.

A lifelong lover of German shepherds, there followed a string of Alsatians that found their way to him from rescue homes or people who couldn’t look after them.

He regularly enjoyed six-mile walks in the beautiful Oxfordshire countryside and woodland, which in great part saved his life during the difficult time adjusting to life without Vivien.

John slowly but surely became an integral and well-loved part of the Woodcote community.

He loved children and was particularly involved with the village primary school, where he joined the board of governors and regularly visited and read to the children.

Over the past 15 years, John became most well-known for Humphrey, his chatty and bright African grey parrot, which accompanied him everywhere.

The pair became a very familiar sight to many of the children and families on Woodcote village green, in the Red Lion in Woodcote, the Highwayman in Checkendon and other pubs around South Oxfordshire.

John is survived by his children, Catherine, Andrew and Philippa, and eight grandchildren.