Ogatodomar RIP

 
Caroline Jay has kindly written to tell me that Ogatodomar* (Dave Evans ) has died. We knew that he was very ill but it is still very sad.
 
I never met him. I never even heard his voice. But I have shared things with him for years on Blip. (I keep wanting to say we were kindred spirits, but I fear a boom from the heavens saying “Oh no we weren’t!”)
 
His responses to my Blips were of three types – silence; acerbic sarcasm;hearts. They were spread fairly evenly and I never knew what to expect.
 
My responses to his Blips were a bit more tentative. Praise when it was due and some attempts at humour. I feared his sharp tongue and sometimes gnomic replies.
 
To me, his best ones were stolen from the TV and featured his sporting heroes from snooker and F1. A pity that they were “illegal” but that didn’t stop Dave.
 
So for my tribute picture I have chosen one of him playing Stagefright on the Old Grey Whistle Test in 1975.
 
Dave had many “careers”. Merchant Seaman, Recording Artist, Ceramicist, Award-winning marmalade- maker’’.. the list goes on.
 
In latter years he made and repaired guitars in Brussels (He made the one in the video)
 
An inveterate smoker and malt whisky drinker, he seemed to live life to the full.
 
He will be much missed by me and many other Blippers.

 
*As something of a wordsmith I finally had to ask Dave what his Blip name meant. It is Portuguese for Seacat and it was a nickname that a girlfriend gave him because of his seafaring background.