Stanley Doubtfire HENRY Stanley Doubtfire (94), who was known affectionately as Stanley D, had settled in retirement at Royal Wootton Bassett.

Originally from London, he was a remarkable man with exceptional musical and artistic gifts. He was tall, distinguished, extremely well read and very perceptive.

He went to Art School and served an apprenticeship as a banknote engraver with Thomas De La Rue & Company, at a time when he also played violin in an orchestra and was learning to play the piano.

As a young man, his hand-made racing bicycle was his pride and joy, and he enjoyed long cycle rides through the Kent and Surrey countryside.

He was 17 at the outbreak of the Second World War, too young to enlist in the RAF, so he joined the Air Training Corps at Croydon, and longed to become a pilot. Sadly, a slight problem with his eyes denied him that opportunity, but he became a navigator instead, after being called up in the autumn of 1941.

During his initial training at Scarborough his musical skills on the ukulele were appreciated. He was posted to an advanced navigation course in the USA, in a convoy escorted by destroyers, and after landing at Halifax, Nova Scotia, he was sent to Miami, Florida, for the course.

He returned from New York on the Queen Mary, which had become a troopship, and after operational training at RAF Harwell he joined a squadron of Wellington bombers and completed 40 hazardous missions. On one occasion, under heavy bombardment, the crew sang Happy Birthday to him, with no hint of irony.

While in Cairo, awaiting posting, he met Dianne, a WAAF who later became his wife. He gained a commission and served as a Navigator Instructor on Wellingtons until the end of the war.

He also met an RAF Education Officer, Frank Slater, a portrait painter who recommended Stanley to paint a portrait of George VI, for the Officers’ Mess at RAF Qastina in Palestine. He had only a black and white photograph of the king in full Naval uniform and acquired a reference book of medals to ensure authenticity. The portrait was highly acclaimed.

After demob in 1946 Stanley returned to work at De La Rue. He and Dianne were married in that year, and their only son, the late Ashley Doubtfire, was born in 1948.

Stanley did many engravings of King George VI and many portraits of our current Queen, for banknotes and postage stamps. He had his own studio when the family lived on the Isle of Wight. Dianne was an accomplished author, and Stanley, who also wrote several books, built his own boat and enjoyed sailing.

After being widowed, he spent much time at Wootton Bassett before settling in the town.

He was also noted for his skill in creating wonderful musical instruments as well as beautiful drawings and engravings. He made a superb bust of Nelson Mandela which is on display at South Africa House. His work, a testimony to his talent, is a lasting legacy.

Some of Stanley’s favourite music was included in the cremation service at Westerleigh. Afterwards, everyone was welcomed to enjoy food and further reminiscences, at the Ganges Restaurant in Royal Wootton Bassett.