Pete joined the THST Board in February 2017 and served for five years, the last four as Board Secretary. His contribution was enormous and reflected his many interests and motivations. Pete had a deep sense of community and worked tirelessly to promote the work of Studio 306 Collective, the local food banks and other charities such as PCUK. He was a valuable addition to delegations to the Trust’s Board to Board meetings at Spurs, and he always offered sensible, measured advice cutting through to issues that really mattered.

He provided a seemingly endless selection of prizes for our raffles through the contacts he made and the donations he encouraged. No matter how busy he was, Pete would always be there to ensure that our fundraising events were the greatest fun, and raised substantial sums for the charities we supported.

Pete built up a huge collection of Spurs memorabilia himself, and his office and backdrop for Zoom calls was a testament to this. He was fascinated by the history and heritage of Spurs, and it was extremely important to him that the Club honour its past, including through a permanent museum. One of his few regrets from his time spent on the Trust was that despite continued pressure, the museum, which had been promised by the Club did not materialise.

Many Spurs fans originally met Pete through the ‘Spurs Secret History’ walks that he organised with his friends Rob White and Julie Welch, and it is fitting that the Spurs Heritage Trail, which he helped to devise, was launched this week. We know that he was also so proud to see the Spurs Clock proudly installed on the High Road again. Since his first match at the Lane, a victory against West Ham in April 1969 in which Jimmy Greaves scored the only goal, Pete has been a regular. As with everything Pete did, he threw himself wholeheartedly into supporting his team, watching them home and away whenever he could, watching the under 21s, the women, any team that was Spurs. One proud moment saw him presenting Ash Neville with the ‘Player of the Match’ trophy at a game sponsored by THST.

As it gradually became more difficult for Pete to attend matches, he was especially grateful to the Club for arranging a trip for him and Jill to the training centre where he met the first team squad and management team. This season his friends at THST enjoyed watching Spurs on TV with him and we are all so happy that Pete got to watch Ange Ball and to share the renewed optimism it has brought.

A great communicator, Pete enjoyed talking with everyone. He had a fantastic memory for detail and made everyone feel important. It was therefore natural that while on the THST Board he would regularly accept calls for interviews and other media opportunities – he enjoyed every chance to talk about Spurs and to meet others who shared his passion. He was also brilliant at keeping in touch and his contact list had to be seen to be believed. It was a source of great pleasure to him that later in life he developed many deep friendships with former players and their families.

As well as appearing regularly on The Spurs Show, he guested on the Trust podcast and many others, always promoting the work of the Trust, discussing Spurs, adding context and measured reflection. His guest appearance on his friend Theo Delaney’s Life Goals podcast gives a wonderful and very moving insight into the football moments that shaped his life.  You can enjoy them here and here

Pete’s Twitter handle, @Pete2Boogie is a nod to another of his loves: of music and dancing. His particular favourites were Saint Etienne, Motown music, Joel Culpepper plus Jools Holland and Ruby Turner, who he saw live more than 30 times. He also enjoyed playing cricket and hockey, and his home was full of colourful art.

Looking at Twitter and Facebook after Pete’s passing was shared, the huge outpouring of love towards Pete, gives a sense of the man, of what he meant to everyone, and how well he lived his life.

Pete faced the end of his life with the same bravery, openness and honesty with which he lived. He did everything to give himself a fighting chance but when the time came, he embraced his destiny without complaint. In short, he was an inspiration to us all. Those of us who were blessed with his friendship have learned so much from the way he conducted himself. His time with us may be over, but we will feel his presence wherever we knew him, be it cheering on the team at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium, enjoying a pint at his ‘local’ The Antwerp Arms, breathing in the air on the North Norfolk Coast, listening to Jools Holland or maybe when we see a pork pie hat in the distance, and just for a moment, think, “There’s Pete.”