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Bob Kelley |
Bob Kelley – campaigner and local hero
BOB Kelley, who fought to keep Somers Town free from high rise buildings and helped pave the way for the British Library to be built on the Euston Road, has died aged 76.
Mr Kelley won a reputation with his neighbours for becoming involved in Somers Town issues – and was a familiar sight to tenants and councillors in Church Way and Doric Way estates during the 1970s and 1980s.
Mr Kelley, who served as a Military Policeman during his national service, was once a member of the International Patrol, which helped stabilise Austria after the war.
His service brought him a fleeting encounter with the big screen as his patrol was given a cameo in post-war thriller The Third Man.
Last year he and his wife Jean were invited to the Schonnbrunn Palace to celebrate 50 years of democracy in Austria. His family came from the East End, and aged 19, Mr Kelley fell for the sister of one of his comrades. The couple went to the pictures for their first date and three years later they were married, remaining so for 54 years and having two daughters.
Mrs Kelley, 72, who lives in Gospel Oak, remembers: “As a young father he saw there was nothing for children to do. So he used to take the children out on his minibus.
He helped campaign for play areas and when he was off-duty, he would work as a part-time play leader. He was aware of their social needs.”
His wife said: “As a founder member of the Somers Town Action Group in the early 70s, he presented a petition that highlighted plans for a 17-storey print works in Euston Road. “This enabled the campaign – picked up by MP Frank Dobson – to save Bloomsbury from demolition and on that street now stands the British Library. That’s why there are no high-rise buildings in Somers Town.”
Although he went on to work as a driver for the Post Office for many years, lung problems eventually brought Mr Kelley’s campaigning to a halt.
Close friend Labour councillor Roger Robinson paid tribute.
He said: “He was a very formidable leader of tenants. As he got older he got less and less well but was still active in Church Way and Doric Way tenants and residents’ associations.
“Bob was a nice guy, he tried to hide it under a tough exterior. He was an extremely hardworking tenants leader and quite a tough cookie. He didn’t take any nonsense from anybody and was a very frank, honest and gentle man – a great Somers Town man.”
Mr Kelley died on July 6 after developing pneumonia. He had suffered five years of painful complications after developing MRSA when being treated for an insect bite.
Despite having one leg amputated, he refused to use his wheelchair and insisted on walking again.
Mrs Kelley said: “He always wanted to be contented. He told me a few months ago that despite everything that happened to him, he had a wonderful life.”
ROISIN GADELRAB |
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