Comrades were saddened to hear of the passing of Ian Gregory after a short illness with cancer.
He will be fondly remembered in Sheffield and London by the many comrades whose lives he touched.
He found his political home whist on strike at Jewel Razors in Sheffield in the early 1980s. A proud working class person he went on to education at Northern College and Sheffield University.
He then utilised his skills as a fitter—particularly keeping the Socialist Worker print presses working long past their sell-by date.
Ian was a gentle giant, funny, smiling and articulate as he explained politics with clarity or just doing his job at his own steady pace.
He was never afraid to get stuck in when required in the fight against the fascists. Arrested and cuffed while protesting against the racist headteacher Ray Honeyford in the mid-1980s, he had no shortages of witnesses.
Of course true to form the police lied in court but we did better and he was acquitted.
He was badly attacked by the fascists in Bethnal Green, east London, but this did not stop his courage, resolve or the matter of fact determination that he would need again in his final days.
Generous, optimistic and with a love of life, Motown and dancing, Ian will live in the hearts and minds of many.
Condolences to Kate, Brendon, Declan and his sister Denise.
Trevor Goodfield and Bea Kay, Sheffield SWP
She was no harmless eccentric
