Adrian Hoare, a secondary school teacher and local historian whose work focused on Norfolk, in particular the town of Wymondham, and Kett's Rebellion of 1549, has died aged 90.
Teaching career at Wymondham College
Most of his career was spent at Wymondham College, a state boarding school, where as housemaster of Cavell Hall he made a lasting impact on generations of pupils. Remembered as fair and supportive by those in his care, he was also an inspirational teacher. His passion for communicating the past extended beyond the classroom.
Prolific author of local history
His first book, In Search of Robert Kett (1990), was followed in retirement by some 20 other works, including Standing Up to Hitler: The Story of Norfolk's Home Guard and Secret Army (with a foreword by the actor Ian Lavender, his former pupil, who played Private Pike in Dad's Army), When War Came to Wymondham: 1939-45, and a return to his favourite subject, An Unlikely Rebel: Robert Kett and the Norfolk Rising.
Establishing Wymondham Heritage Museum
With his wife, Anne, he was also instrumental in establishing Wymondham Heritage Museum at a new site and in its winning a Gulbenkian award in 1997.
Early life and family
Adrian was born in Bath, the son of Gladys Tilley, a secretary, and Thomas Hoare, a schoolmaster, and his unmarried mother brought him up almost single-handedly in the village of Thorpe, in Surrey. Although he could remember meeting his father only once, he later discovered they shared striking biographical similarities including teaching in boarding schools, coaching fencing and playing the violin.
He studied history at the University of Hull. There he met Anne Hosier, and together they formed a partnership in both life and work. They married in 1962, and Adrian embarked on his first teaching job at Bournville boys technical school in Birmingham. In 1974 he joined Wymondham College, where Anne also worked as a teacher and deputy housemistress, and they went on to co-author several books.
Retirement and personal discoveries
Retirement in 1994, as well as giving him more time to write, also provided Adrian with the opportunity to interrogate his own origins. He found that his father had had two other sons, Brendan, who became a pianist, and Michael, an accountant. Though both brothers had sadly already died, he became great friends with Michael's widow, Frances, and an uncle to their sons, Philip, a theatre company manager, and Cris, an artist, as well as a great-uncle to Philip's daughters, Hannah, Sarah and Harriet.
Passions and legacy
Among Adrian's passions were the Marx Brothers, Derby County and Fats Waller, whose When Somebody Thinks You're Wonderful he requested to be played at his funeral. The charming watercolours and drawings by Anne that illustrated his books – as they did the homemade cards treasured by all who received them – were a mark of their close relationship, and her death in 2023 affected him deeply.
Adrian is survived by me.
