Ted Read obituary

Ted Read, my father, who has died aged 94, was a man of intelligence and passion who will be remembered as an inspirational classics teacher. He enjoyed entertaining people with a special brand of jokes, and he loved challenging people with his forthright opinions. He was never bored – he couldn’t be, he had so many things that interested him. He was mad about playing and watching sport, including football, rugby, cricket, basketball, tennis, squash and golf. He excelled at them all. He became a teacher at Southend high school for boys in Essex in the 1950s, staying at the school until his retirement in the late 90s. He was a natural educator whose enthusiasm to encourage talent left a lasting legacy of respect among the boys he taught. Anthony Haycroft, taught by Ted in the early 70s, said: “His lessons were also life lessons and politics usually featured.” Kevin May, a late 70s pupil, said: “He was informal and rarely diplomatic. His classroom was a place where discussion and argument was encouraged about any topic.” David Steed said: “When I attended Southend in the late 70s, the regime at the school was old-fashioned and quite brutal at times. But Ted treated us with a level of