David Forgan (OB 1952 - 1963)

A major player in the communications, radar and electronics fields during the Cold War, David Forgan died in Pershore, Worcestershire on June 27 th 2026, aged 81. The funeral took place at St. Mary’s Church, Ripple, Tewkesbury on August 17th. Born on April 17th 1945, he spent his early years in Harold Wood. Aged seven, he entered the Prep School. Passing the 11-plus exam, he gained a free place in the Main School, joining North. A member of the CCF, he began his interest in signals technology which was to play such an important part in his life.

On leaving, he worked first for Marconi in Chelmsford. An enthusiastic cyclist, he pedalled each day between home and work. After a year, Marconi sponsored his studies at Nottingham University. As a graduate, he was employed at the Royal Radar Establishment at Farnborough on classified activities. Very little is known about his work, beyond a focus on communications, radar and electronics in the context of the Cold War. He later worked for the Defence Evaluation & Research Agency, necessitating a move in 1993 from Farnborough to Malvern, the location of the Government electronics & signals activities.

David had an important role during a remarkable period in British scientific history. The Royal Aircraft Establishment Farnborough and the Royal Signals and Radar Establishment in Malvern focused on military radar systems, secure communications, aircraft avionics, missile guidance and early digital computing. Many technologies developed at Malvern for possible military combat were adapted for civil uses in aviation, telecommunications and general computing.

He enjoyed a rewarding family life through his nieces Kate, Lesley and Rachel and their children. There were walking tours with his mother and family holidays in the Lake District, Devon and the Isle of Wight. He attended the Upton-on-Severn jazz festival with Lesley. He much enjoyed travel, his work taking him to the United States and to other countries. He visited Rachel in Prague and Italy when she worked abroad. He went to Peru with a party for the Worcester diocese. With his sister Anne and her husband, he journeyed to the Belarus to help raise funds for the Chernobyl victims.

David was a kind and generous man, reflecting a very strong Christian faith. He served as Secretary of the local parish church council and was the church's representative on the Upton Deanery. He supported the Open Book team at Upton Primary School, a Bible study and prayer group and the Othona Church Fellowship, formed after the Second World War to enable Christians from Germany and the UK to meet. He built up a considrable library and collected Chinese porcelain, antiques and mementoes of his travels.

At his funeral, his friend Roger Gillard recalled “a highly intelligent and cultured man about whom you rarely, if ever, heard a disparaging word.”