We got to know each other relatively late - I was 21 and he was 29 and it was at my 21st birthday party that I first met both Andrew and Christine.  We were both a little confused by the apparent existence of a feud between the two branches of our family.  But, despite the various rumours flying around relating to disputes over property or sibling rivalry nobody actually knew what the feud was about.  On that basis both Andrew and I felt it was not worth bothering with and we became the best of friends.

I recall lots of happy family gatherings, most recently Christmas 2017 spent at East Harling.  Andrew’s unique sense of humour was an important ingredient of these.  As people got to know us both a physical likeness was said to exist - I am not sure which of the two of us was more confused by this.  As for me, the younger by a good 8 years, I was always perplexed by the fact he maintained a strong head of hair retaining its original colour.  I failed totally to match him on that score.

Of many specific memories one which really sticks in my mind is Andrew and Christine’s trip to China in 1993.  This was well before travels to India and Burma were on the McLean itinerary.  China was still a relatively closed, developing, country and independent travel there was, shall we say, a little daring.  At the time Andrew was going through a period of successive fixed term contracts and so, employment- and finance-wise, there was a degree of uncertainty.  The holiday dates were fixed and then, at the eleventh hour, Andrew was offered a new contract the start of which coincided with the start of the holiday.  Andrew knew it was a lifelong ambition of Christine’s to visit China.  So, he was not put off, he negotiated a deal with his new employer.  He would work for a week and then take two week’s leave so he could join Christine who kept to the original dates.

During that trip, putting it simply, Andrew was Andrew.  He had a beaming smile the whole time even though he could not understand a word anyone was saying.  To make matters worse he was presented with a variety of really strange food items, many of which conflicted with the requirements of his normal diet - they contained unmentionable items such as fish heads or internal organs of unspecified animals; even worse, many of them were green vegetables, something Andrew had spent a lifetime avoiding.  However, he was the perfect guest, never raising a single objection.  My final recollection of that trip is, on his last evening, walking down a major shopping street in Shanghai together.  This street was full of retail outlets selling all manner of objects from valves to pumps and pistons which were only comprehendible to an engineer.  Andrew was like the proverbial kid in the candy store, delighted by what he saw.  It was typical of him that this would be one of his abiding memories of the trip.

Andrew, you will be greatly missed.