
Michael Dolbear passed away on 24 January 2023 at the age of 91. After leaving Lancing he worked for Lloyds Bank where his father had been a manager at the Hove branch. In the mid-1950s he left to join the BBC, initially working in London and then for a number of years in Bristol before returning to London to work in the Outside Broadcast department. He remained there for 20 years as Contracts Manager and was also involved in a number of overseas broadcasts of major sports events. Mike travelled to the 1976 Olympics and the 1978 Football World Cup as well as several Winter Olympics and Commonwealth Games.
Mike retired from the BBC in 1986 and enjoyed a long and happy retirement pursuing his interests of watching sport, especially football and cricket. He combined this with travelling with his wife Anne, who he had married in 1959. They enjoyed several holidays following the England cricket team overseas. He was a member of the MCC.
Having lived in Cheam, Surrey, since 1967, Mike and Anne moved to Wiltshire in 2018 and celebrated their diamond wedding anniversary in 2019. Sadly Anne passed away the following year and Mike remained in the retirement village to which they had moved until just before his death. He is survived by his son Anthony, daughter Sally, daughter-in-law Lucy, son-in-law Phil and grandchildren Tom, Kate and Sarah. He remained a member of the Old Lancing Club and was made a member of the Lancing Foundation in 2011. At the celebration of his life at the West Wiltshire Crematorium he entered the chapel to the strains of Sussex by the Sea, reflecting the love of the county that his early life, including his years at Lancing, had instilled, as well as his enthusiasm for military band music.
The Dolbear Family