Sir Nigel Mobbs

Hallmark reported in April 1982 :- Mr Gerald Nigel Mobbs, of Widmer Lodge, Parslows Hillock, has been appointed High Sheriff of Buckinghamshire.

Hallmark August 1986. Congratulations "To Mr Gerald Nigel Mobbs of Widmer Lodge, Parslows Hillocks on having a Knighthood conferred on him in the Queen's Birthday Honours List."

Hallmark 2005. A Tribute to Sir Nigel Mobbs 1937-2005 (PDF created with pdfFactory- pdffactory.com)

Gerald Nigel Mobbs was born in Birmingham in 1937. He was educated at Marlborough and Christ Church Oxford. In 1961 he married Jane Berry, a daughter of the 2^nd Viscount Kemsley, and they had a son, twin daughters and seven grandchildren. The family have lived in Buckinghamshire for many years, over 28 of them at Widmer Lodge in Lacey Green.

At the time of his death in October 2005, Nigel Mobbs was the long-serving Chairman of Slough Estates plc, a position held by both his grandfather, Sir Noel Mobbs, and his father, Gerald Mobbs. Amongst many other appointments held, he was also Chairman of Bovis Homes plc, Chairman of Trustees of Historic Royal Palaces and a Commissioner of the Royal Hospital Chelsea.

Nigel Mobbs was High Sheriff of the county in 1982, received a knighthood in 1986, and in 1997 he was honoured to be appointed as Lord-Lieutenant, a role which he thoroughly enjoyed and to which he was utterly committed. He carried out the various duties with his customary energy, enthusiasm and talent for meticulous organization. He had a deep-seated love of his country and a great sense of public duty. During his term of office he represented Her Majesty the Queen on many occasions and also received members of the Royal Family when they visited various parts of the county. HRH the Princess Royal paid a second visit to The Home of Rest for Horses down the road in Speen in May last year.

Sir Nigel took great pleasure in opening the new Village Hall at Lacey Green on 9" October 1999. At that time he said he hoped that the new hall would for years to come be a focus for renewed village activity and voluntary involvement. This hope was fulfilled as the hall has been a great success, thus enhancing community life in the village and the surrounding area. He believed that maintaining community spirit and pride was vitally important in today’s fast-moving world and that, though opportunities for change should be grasped, the rich traditions of the past should not be forgotten.

Wherever possible, Sir Nigel liked to use local businesses, amongst them Gommes Forge (The Foundry) Dell Bros.Ltd who undertook several projects at his home; Doug Tilbury to help with hedging and other work on the land; and Widmer Feeds who supplied food for his large horses. He presented prizes at the village fete, attended the induction of the vicar, Reverend Denise Critchell, at St. John's in March 2003, and liked to enjoy a pint of beer with family and friends at both The Pink and Lily and The Whip.

Nigel Mobbs was a big man in every sense of the word. immensely tall, he had a commanding physical presence, a phenomenal memory, a huge capacity for work, and a tremendous sense of fun. He set high standards for himself and for those who worked alongside him but he was always fair and never pompous. His highly developed sense of humour enabled him to defuse many a difficult situation whether in the boardroom or elsewhere.

But business life was always kept separate from home life as far as was possible. As well as being a loyal public servant, he was a devoted husband, son, father and grandfather who liked nothing more than to get back to Widmer Lodge to be with his family, his horses and his dogs.

The last issue of Hallmark noted the death of Sir Nigel Mobbs, making the point that an obituary could only follow in the next issue. I am sure there will be an Official obituary in this magazine but this is not about expounding the virtues of a titled man, this is about an extraordinary man.