Mr John V Winchurch of Hubberston (formerly of Tenby, Pembrokeshire and Blisland, Cornwall) died suddenly at age 80 on March 12, 2023 after suffering a heart attack on a flight home from a solo backpacking trip to Greece, a place he had visited many times over the years.

Born in Birmingham in 1942 to Margaret Downing Winchurch and Francis Victor Winchurch, he was happiest as a child when the family moved to Tenby when he was twelve. Growing up near the sea, building his first dinghy and joining the Sea Cadets, he wrote in his blog, that they, ‘…had the harbour and the town as their playground and despite the hardships were lucky children of the 1950s.’

His family lived in Tenby until he left to attend Cardiff University where he received a B.Sc in Electrical Engineering.After graduation, John joined the BBC Communications department in London in 1964 before accepting a regional post later in Cardiff.

As his career progressed, all moves from Cardiff to Dublin,  ATV in Birmingham, and ITV Border Television in Cumbria before his early retirement, were influenced by his love of nature and need to be closer to places he could explore on foot such as Pembrokeshire, and the Lake District.

Sailing, coastal walks, mountaineering club and time with his family were a priority away from work and he became focused on home renovation projects as well developing a variety of skills as he took on larger projects with each new home purchase. In his later years, he picked up the genealogy work that his father had begun and made it a regular part of his daily life, finding new relatives and fellow researchers as genealogy research moved online and DNA testing became available. The detective work involved was helped significantly by obituaries where bits of unusual information could help link people to ancestors with certainty by clearing up missing or inaccurate historical notes. John would find it interesting that with his death being registered abroad, future researchers not yet born might have to look a bit harder to find him and enjoy the satisfaction he experienced when making a discovery.

He is survived by his wife, Elizabeth, whom he married in 2009, two daughters, Rachel and Lo, from his previous marriage, two granddaughters, Lucie and Hattie, and his brother David and family.

The funeral service took place on Wednesday, April 5 at Parc Gwyn Crematorium, Narberth, Pembrokeshire. Mike Ashbridge led the service.There will be family flowers only, with donations if desired made payable to the R.N.L.I Tenby c/o Funeral Directors Messrs W&MJ Rossiters & Sons LTD. The Old Rectory, The Norton, Tenby, SA70 8AB or via www.rossitersfunerals.co.uk