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In remembrance of a society member - Anthony Head |
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Written by Dean Beedell (webmaster)
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 Anthony Head, a long-standing member of the Henley Operatic society passed away
on the 16th November, 2011 aged 46 years after a year long struggle
against cancer. Anthony was a good friend of mine and his lovely wife
Caroline has let me write a few words about him and his time with
HAODS. I had known Anthony as a little boy as Barbara and Brian Head
had performed with my parents since the late 1960s but I really only
began my friendship with Anthony when he reached his teens. Anthony
dragged me off the street one rehearsal evening in 1986 and pulled me
in to join with him in the cast of Carousel. Anthony had a very
positive attitude towards life that made him a person you wanted to
be with. If he suggested doing something, I would be there like a
shot as I knew it would be fun. Carousel was just exactly that, great
fun and from that point both Anthony's and my involvement with the
society went from strength to strength. As well as Carousel, I had
the pleasure of performing with Anthony in Fiddler on the Roof and
West Side Story but when Anthony went on to perform a starring role
in Camelot I merely watched him from the wings, my face beaming
whenever he was on stage.
We had a lot of fun during
rehearsals whilst viewing the drama both on and off-stage. Both
Anthony and I enjoyed watching the emotions, politics and human
chemistry that the performers exhibited during a HAODS show and we
used to talk about the goings-on in the society and laugh deep into
the night. Anthony wasn't just content to sit back and watch, he was
a contributor and a doer - he performed confidently and in his own
style. He loved singing and whilst he sang he was disarming, charming
and loveable. He performed whenever a keyboard was near and loved to
entertain. I think that will be my abiding memory of him, a man that
was fun to be with because he was so eager to please. He was a man
who was easy to love because he was so clever and charming yet so
naughty. Anthony was a good man and the world is a poorer place for
his loss. He leaves his wife Caroline and three children, Lewis,
George and James. Our condolences go out to them and to his parents,
Brian and Barbara and his sister Rachel, whose loss must be so deep.
Cheerio Ant, we'll miss you.
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