I’m grateful for having had the chance to work for Adrian on and off since 2007.  He was a remarkable man and gave me early on in my career the chance to see a great leader in action.  He always remembered the small things about people - regardless of their position - which created loyalty, respect, and a fantastic work culture.   

Working in comms, I always enjoyed Adrian’s challenges (i.e. “get us on You and Yours”  “get this in the national media” etc) and how he believed in your ability to get it done - even when it seemed impossible!

Adrian was clearly interested in every aspect of the railway, but you may be shocked to hear he even took an interest in social media!  Early on in around 2010, I was put in a taxi with him to explain how Twitter worked and how it could be used to help customers.  He was at the time still using paper a lot, so I was rather nervous about how the concept of Twitter would go down with Adrian, but like everything, he got it!

There was also a long list of quirky events that I helped with – quite a few involving classic cars – such as opening the Bicester North new car park with him leaning out of his classic car to cut the ribbon, getting a Ford Model A car on the concourse at Marylebone Station to celebrate Adrian and Barbara’s 9,000 mile Peking to Paris trip, and naming a Shunter train after his PA, Lesley!  Being involved in events like these were some of my happiest working memories and I could tell he enjoyed them too!

He will be sorely missed and my deepest condolences to Barbara and his family.