A FOUNDER of the Crashbox Club, a country man, always full of fun and laughter was how Bob Martyr was described at his Memorial service in Holy Trinity Church at Yeoford.

Bob, his full name was Robert Bernard Charles Martyr, was born in May, 1932 in North London.  He died peacefully in hospital on October 15.  The service on November 7 was taken by Licensed Lay Minister Carol Price following a private cremation.

The little church was full with nearly everyone afterwards walking to The Duck pub in the village to share memories of Bob.

Bob was evacuated during the last War outside London but when his parents found he was sharing a bed with three other boys, they took him home again.

His father had built an Anderson shelter in the garden where the family of four huddled together until it became necessary to go to the nearest railway station, Gants Hill, to spend the night with crowds of other people.

School was in people’s homes and had to change frequently as the houses were regularly bombed.

There was a large park opposite their home and Bob had become firm friends with the park keeper, an elderly World War One veteran who was a wonderful teacher for the young Bob, teaching him how to shoot, row a boat, work with him at the pit saw and wood carving.

He was in London through the smog when on one occasion visibility was so bad, his father had asked a man where the railway station was, to be told that one more step and he would fall down the steps into the station.

After the War, Bob went to a prep school outside London and after many escapades he left to work on a farm not far from North London.

After a week’s work, his landlady asked him to pay his rent.  He had to spend the money his father had given him to get back home and ask for more money.  His father told Bob he would have to work for more hours.

After several years on different farms, one as far away as Rugby, Bob’s parents decided to leave London for Devon and bought The Railway pub at North Tawton.

Bob found farming work and helped his father in the pub.  One day in Exeter he happened upon a naval recruiting stand, thought it sounded fun and joined up.

However a life at sea was not for Bob and he managed to leave the navy and return home.  He had knitted a long scarf and said he had a dog following him.  Bob was sent to the Navy doctor who addressed all his questions for Bob to a skull on his table.  “How old were you when you first took an interest in … um … girls’ legs?” he was asked.

So Bob returned home to farming and made a success of selling cattle feed for farmers out of Pauls and Whites in Crediton, then at Wyatts of Chard which was taken over by Dalgety.

It was a job that suited Bob, he enjoyed cruising round the countryside looking for likely farms, the independence and doing a bit of battle with the firms he worked for to bring down prices to the farmers.

Old cars were one of his passions, and Bob was one of the founder members of the Crashbox Club, which held its monthly meetings in a pub.  That was where Bob met Andrea who was driving an Austin Seven. They were married in 1974 at Huxham, living first there and then in Cheriton Fitzpaine.

They later moved to France for some years before returning to Devon to live in Yeoford about 20 years ago.

In her tribute to Bob, Carol Price said she remembered him going to the regular coffee mornings at Holy Trinity, that everyone was so pleased to see him “because you knew you could always have a good laugh with him”.

Andrea and family were so grateful for the many cards sent to commemorate Bob and felt that the church memorial service held by Carol Price was very appropriate.