Page 132 - RSDG Year of 2021 CREST

138 EAGLE AND CARBINE
in the packaging industry by selling advertising in ‘International Paper Board Industry’. In 1977, Michael asked Major Binsted if he could launch a new title to cover the carton business, which they went on to call ‘Folding Carton Industry’. Michael worked success- fully alongside Fiona’s brother Ed and his wife Jan for many years, before setting up Brunton Publications in 1988.
Michael always loved visiting box plants and carton factories, talking to owners and managers and under- standing how the industry ticked. He was also keen to learn about new developments and the advent of flexo printing on corrugated board gave him the chance to tour the world, talking at conferences. Although he had never printed one single box in his life, audiences listened and took note! He was an eloquent speaker and was a firm favourite on the speaking circuit during the 1980s and 1990s.
He also broadened the reach of the business, when he formed a publishing alliance in North America with Ted Vilardi in the late 1980s. They became an industry powerhouse in North America, forging strong and life- long friendships.
He developed the business to become a complete service provider, growing the Brunton ‘family’ to 50 people. He was never happier than watching people excel in their jobs, encouraging them to be the best they could be. He wasn’t the boss; he was just part of a dynamic team. He was very much a man of the people and treated individuals on merit, not rank or title.
Ever the innovator, Michael worked closely with Reed Exhibitions in launching the ‘Corrugated’ exhibitions, which ran successfully in 1994, 1998 and 2002. In 1994 his eldest son, Daniel, joined the business. Together, they worked in partnership for the next 27 years, with Michael never actually retiring, reading his final page proof the night before he had a stroke.
Over the years, Michael’s passion for excellence was most evident in other areas of his life. Whether it was helping arrange a summer ball to raise money for the local church or his boys’ prep school, or hosting people in his own home, Michael was never happier than when he had a glass of wine in one hand... and of course, a Silk Cut in the other! He made people laugh, he made them comfortable and at ease.
With his magazine called ‘Clay Shooting’, he and his youngest son, Ben, took the sport to the next level, arranging shooting competitions in the UK, Belgium, Russia and the USA, the likes of which have never really been matched since. Crowning glory, though,
was when Ben won the World FITASC Championships in 1998.
In the world of horse racing, Michael, with his brother Tony, sister-in-law Sue and eldest son, Dan, owned Clarendon Stud for 14 years, breeding, training and racing Arabian racehorses. The first horse they bred, which went on to win many races, was named Khanspur, the name of the house in which Michael was born. They went on to breed multiple Group win- ning horses, and sold horses to France and the Middle East, with progeny still racing with Clarendon blood- lines to this day. In his final seasons of breeding horses, Michael was announced leading breeder in the UK, testament to the planning and attention to detail of the team at Clarendon Stud.
Closer to home, his work within the parishes of Allington and Boscombe, tirelessly fundraising for the development of a wonderful new village hall, saw him awarded the British Empire Medal in the Queen’s Birthday Honours in 2020. His meticulous planning, negotiating skills and pursuit of excellence saw the community in which he and Fiona lived benefit from many wonderful summer events, band nights, BBQs and Bonfire celebrations, raising so much money for the local community and its play park, its church and, finally, the village hall which, sadly, Michael never saw officially opened. He suffered a massive stroke and died on Wednesday, 3rd March 2021 about one month before the village hall was opened.
Peter Bloor
Peter Bloor was the third of three siblings and was born on 17 December 1942 to Tom and Agnes. Sadly, his mother passed away when he was 9 years old. He was brought up in the West Derby area of Liverpool and went to school at St Dominics. He loved football, was a goalkeeper for the school team and he went on to support
Liverpool. He loved the music of the day and the emerging Mersey sound. He did most of his growing up in the post war years when money was tight, times were hard and holidays were few and far between. He loved the outdoors and was always active.
Peter left school at the age of 15 and went to work as a tailor’s apprentice. His brother Tommy had joined the army and, as soon as he was old enough, he joined the Army for his National Service. After basic train- ing he joined the 3rd Caribiniers in Chester then went to Germany. At the end of National Service, Peter left