News

David Blandford 1945-2026

28/07/2026

David was born in Westminster Hospital, London, on 6 May 1945. He was the oldest of four boys. His parents lived in Surrey: his father was an engineer at Vickers Armstrong; his mother was a talented gardener, craftswoman and transformer of houses. He went as a boarder to preparatory school in Sussex and then to Malvern College. In his early teens his family moved to Derbyshire for a while, before returning to Surrey.

He read English at Hertford College, Oxford, spending much of his time at the Oxford Playhouse as a business manager on student productions for university and college drama societies, and developing his interest in European cinema. In his second year he met Nicky, who was still at school, wooing her with the metaphysical poets: she subsequently went to Middlesex Hospital as a medical student, qualifying as a doctor in 1971. They married in 1967 and had two daughters, Jessica and Susannah, who have produced six grandchildren.

On graduation David worked as a graduate management trainee at Rediffusion, a long-established cable television and radio company that had acquired a London ITV franchise. He was subsequently appointed as the company’s Regional Manager, based in Exeter. He was sponsored by the company to complete a Diploma in Management Studies at Regent Street Polytechnic in London.

After leaving Rediffusion, David self-funded a one-year MSc in Business Studies at Warwick University, and then taught Business Studies in the Hotel and Catering Department at South Devon Technical College, also taking a part-time Postgraduate Certificate in Education at Exeter University. As part of his teaching, he conducted business studies projects with his students, and soon became a tutor on Careers Research and Advisory Centre (CRAC) courses, mainly during his college vacations.

In 1978 he was appointed Director of the Insight Programme at CRAC, and in 1981 he became Director of CRAC, building up and extending the range of its learning programmes for students wanting to explore the world of work. He retired from CRAC in 1996.

After retirement he took a part-time post as manager of the Foundation of Hinchingbrooke School, Huntingdon, applying his financial acumen to managing its investments and running seminars on investment management. He was a member of the Investment Group at the University of the Third Age (U3A) in Cambridge.

David died suddenly and unexpectedly on Sunday 28 June 2026, from a long-standing heart disease.