Roland Dallas

Roland Dallas was a much loved and highly respected colleague. In the past few years he spent in Pickering House, the care home run by the Journalists’ Charity, he was deeply admired by the other residents and in particular the staff for the great courage and toughness he showed in enduring and suffering his final illness. Despite it he was able to bring a smile to others’ faces and he cheered everyone by playing his collection of CDs of great classical music.

One day I arrived at Pickering House for a spell of respite myself. I was greeted on the lawn by an erect gentleman who was clearly a resident. I introduced myself. He introduced himself as Roland Dallas. Surely not THE Roland Dallas, said I? Yes, THE Roland Dallas, he replied with that characteristic twinkle in his eye. I will always think of him as THE Roland Dallas.

In 2008, as all the banks were collapsing, we amused ourselves over breakfast by creating a new world central bank. Despite the Vatican’s shabby history in banking we based it there and decided that the Pope would appear on his balcony overlooking St Peter’s Square to announce the new parities of the major currencies. He was fun to live with and from the music equipment in his room the entire building had a constant concert of wonderful classical music, much of it Italian of course. ■