My father, Peter Gosnell, who has died aged 96, spent a lifetime confounding perceptions of incapacity. He maintained his curiosity in artwork, historical past, music, sport and journey, campaigned in a conservation battle and, whereas working in authorities service, was on the forefront of the drive for equal employment rights within the Fifties.
Peter joined the civil service in 1951 as a braille shorthand typist within the then Ministry of Housing and Native Authorities. He had been registered as a blind individual two years earlier. He was one of many first six braillists to use for promotion, of whom three had been profitable. Peter was the primary to be positioned in a put up as secretary. He continued to blaze a path and rose to be government officer within the workers coaching division.
As a member of the ministry’s artwork membership, he had footage hung within the Civil Service Artwork Golf equipment’ annual exhibitions, and his work was additionally proven by the Federation of British Artists, the Hesketh Hubbard Society and the Pastel Society.
With an urge for food for examine and a love of London and its historical past, Peter researched subjects together with lamp-posts, bollards and pub names and, following a transfer to Woodberry Down, Hackney, native historical past. He guided associates and acquaintances on excursions of London, usually with guests incredulous to seek out out that he was visually impaired.
Embracing early retirement in 1982, he took a correspondence course in American historical past, then grasped physics and morse code to realize a full radio newbie’s licence enabling him to talk to hams all over the world.
In 1985 the New River and Stoke Newington reservoirs had been threatened with growth. Peter was secretary of the marketing campaign group that fought an extended battle to save lots of the system, now forming Woodberry Wetlands, opened in 2016. In 2020, he supported a powerful however in the end unsuccessful marketing campaign to save lots of an area tree from being felled, and his expertise was included within the 2023 movie The Joyful Man Tree.
Peter was born in London, the son of Christopher Gosnell, a leather-based employee, and Grace (nee Wilson), who ran a store in Fulham – the household lived above the premises. The genetic dysfunction retinitis pigmentosa triggered his sight to deteriorate throughout childhood, and his minimal education included two phrases at Ensham faculty, which had provision for visually impaired kids, and a interval of wartime evacuation to Chichester.
Returning house to Fulham he skilled in gent’s hairdressing, and in addition attended a LCC youth membership, the place he held his personal music appreciation class, gave talks to the thriving native gramophone society and was chosen to participate in two BBC radio dialogue sequence, To Begin You Speaking and Taking It Additional.
Peter recounted his experiences in two books, Some Sunny Day (1998) and Tales from a Nook Store (2015), and numerous audio recordings, together with one for the Imperial Struggle Museum.
He had attended Arsenal matches since 1939, and represented disabled followers at Arsenal FC in 2011 when the membership acquired an award for inclusivity. He attended the entire London-based 1966 World Cup matches, the London Olympics in 2012 and 1948. The vary of live performance artists he noticed included Yehudi Menuhin, Louis Armstrong and, his final, in February, Alfa Mist.
In 1951 he married June Stephens. She survives him, together with two daughters, my sister Anne and me, 4 grandchildren and a great-grandson.
