Phil Girdlestone RIP

[John Ashworth]

From: Roland Girdlestone [mailto:rgirdlesto@aol.com]
Sent: 24 April 2016 01:20 PM
To: RGirdlesto@aol.com
Subject: Phil Girdlestone

Sadly I have to advise you that Phil passed away on 20th April and his funeral will be on Tuesday 3rd May at Doves the Undertakers Chapel, 31 Aitken Street Port Shepstone at 11 am and we will then move on to The Venture Inn Commercial Road Umtentweni.

It is difficult for me to know all Phil's contacts so if you know of other friends or acquaintances who may wish to know then please advise them.

If you cannot attend but would like a tribute read out then please email it to me. Also if any one attending has any pictures or information we will have a display board for the purpose

Phil did not wish for there to be flowers but The South Coast Hospice Association helped Phil through his final days so any donations to them would be hugely appreciated. PO Box 504 Port Shepstone 4250 Natal South Africa or http://www.schospice.co.za/make-a-donation.html

Roland Girdlestone

I've posted this under "South African steam", but it could equally well have been posted under other geographical areas, as Phil's work was prolific, including Sudan.

[John Ashworth]

It was of course Phil [& Bryan Benn,s] concept to operate steam Plandampf freights over the Steam Kyalami after dieselisation. Which was successfully done.

[John Ashworth]

A couple of published obituaries:

Phil Girdlestone, steam pioneer – obituary

In Memoriam - Phil Girdlestone

Both seem to skip his work in Sudan in the 1980s, but it is covered in his posthumously-published autobiography - see http://friendsoftherail.com/forum/viewt ... one#p40199