Peter Nicole 1949 - 2020

Back row: Dario Gradi, Adrian Webb, Jim Chappell, Mike Parker, Shaun Smythe, Chris Green, Mike Drake.

Front row: Alan Payne, Peter Nicolle, Bill Wallace, Alan Gillette, Chris Porter, Erik Sorensen, Dave Smith.

Peter Nicolle, who attended Glyn School from 1961 to 1968, died on 17 August 2020 following a 12 month illness with oesophageal cancer.

Peter was born in Greenford, Middlesex, to Jack and Jean in 1949. He had two younger brothers, Richard and Ian. When Peter was six, the family moved to Ewell. 

Peter attended West Ewell Primary School and then went on to Glyn in 1961, where he was in Abbey House. He had a bright, lively personality with a keen intellect and was selected to take his GCE’s ‘a year early’. This brought him up into the class of ’68 where he formed firm friendships with those who played for the school’s football teams where, though he was slight of build, he became a deft passer of the ball and represented all three of the school’s senior teams. Peter played at right back for the first team which was coached at the time by Dario Gradi. Some of that team are still in touch and Mike Parker (our goalkeeper) vividly remembers the time that Peter scored an own goal - his friends never let him forget it!

He was also a gifted actor, putting in a superb and all too convincing performance in one school play as the virtuous Queen Hermione suspected of infidelity by King Leontes in “A Winter’s Tale”. This is a skill he seems to have passed onto his older son David, who went on to achieve acting success on the West End stage in ‘The Graduate’ and ‘Imperium’.

Following school, he went to Lanchester Polytechnic Coventry, where he studied business. After graduating, he joined Rank Xerox in the sales and marketing department. Peter continued to work as a sales executive for different companies throughout his career. He retired in 2016. 

Peter married Olwyn in 1972 and they had one son, David. Tragically, Olwyn died of cancer when she was 40 years old. He later married Margot in 1993 and they had one son, Jack. 

Over the last 10 years Peter was part of a regular Class of ’68 walking group which met up twice a year to relive old times, exercise across the Chilterns and share a pint or two. We will all miss him greatly. A member of the group said: “Perhaps our greatest insight into Peter was the manner in which he faced the difficulties of his final illness and its inevitable outcome. He was almost always positive and upbeat, without regret, and remained interested in everything and everyone about him to the end.”

In January, Peter’s ambition was to live to see the Grand National; sadly that did not take place, but his love of the horses kept him alert, if not rich, over his final weeks in the care of David and his loving neighbours.

He is survived by Margot and his sons David and Jack. 

Obituary compiled by Roger Cornish, with help from Richard and David Nicolle and the Class of ‘67