Message sent to Linda by John Eason: For now my mind is filled with memories of Reg's first day in HMSO. What a shock for him after a career in the Army, I did wonder if there would be a second. And then there was the time when he was sickening for appendicitis. He had a few bad turns in the office, which we traced down to his having kidneys for dinner. "Don't eat kidneys" was my advice. But then one day Reg suddenly rose from his seat and dashed out of the room and then there was a huge crash and Reg re-appeared soaked from head to foot. I took him up to Welfare on the floor above, but only after helping a painter  down from his ladder in the corridor. "I thought he was a goner" were the only words he could say, pointing to Reg. Reg had collapsed and had taken down a fire bucket as he fell. After he was dried out and had a lie down Reg was sent home. "Did you have kidneys for dinner?" I asked him before he left." No"he said.  " What did you have?" "Steak and kidney pudding!"  Anyway he was then off for six weeks having his appendix out. He was on a sub-section next to mine at the time . His boss was a useless bloke called Norman Reeves. After a couple of weeks I said to Norman that I could help clear up Reg's work ,which was piling up. Norman said he would see to it himself. Two weeks later the same again and likewise the day before Reg returned. On his first day back I apologised to Reg for the fact that nothing had been done while he was away. But Reg cleared his backlog in that one day. And that was him in a nutshell. Unflappable and super efficient. He was the first person in the office to know that Anne and I were going out together and somewhere we have a photo of him at our wedding in Mansfield. As I said we have many fond memories of Reg