31 May 2020 - Memories of Pat and Tony Bugler
Dear all,
The Newsbite at the beginning of April which contained the sad news of the passing of Sutton Poyntz resident Tony Bugler and his beloved wife Pat has prompted a number of memories
Local resident Keith Hudson asked if Tony had had been the owner of the floats and changing tents at the Pier Bandstand back in the 1960s. In those days Keith, then a 12 year old lad, regularly helped there in exchange for a free ride on a float.
As Pat once told Bill Egerton that when she first met Tony he looked like a bronzed Greek god, Keith says “The Tony Bugler I remember from my early teens was indeed ‘bronzed’, as one would expect from someone working on the beach during the warmest months of the year. But my particular memory of him is of a distinguished, bearded man, dressed in a somewhat nautical style of white shorts and blue polo shirt with a leather money bag across his shoulder. It was undoubtedly a thriving business. In those days people came in their droves to stay at the town centre's hotels and guest houses, rather than the now extensive holiday parks, so the local economy was very buoyant. In my late teens I worked as a beach attendant and was always amazed how men would just pull out their holiday pay - a wad of ‘tenners’ - from their back pocket when hiring deckchairs or windshields. Weymouth was certainly a very different resort in the '60s, before the advent of the cheap Mediterranean package holidays.”
Bill, font of all things Sutton Poyntz, says “Tony and Pat lived for a time at the beginning of Preston Road, in the house now occupied by Councillors Ian and Hazel Bruce. They bought Sutton Lodge in the late 1980's from Paul Critchell, who had renovated and divided the old Sutton Farm farmhouse. Tony was a member of the SP Society Committee from 1989 to 2012 and was Chairman from 1992 to 1997. Occasionally he used to wear a Royal Artillery tie, suggesting at his military service, but no more is known about that”
As Hilary Davidson, Chair of the SP Society said about her predecessor “He was a leading light in the Sutton Poyntz Society for many years, a wise man with a lovely sense of humour with an interest in everything and everybody.”
I hope the above adds a little more to your knowledge of Tony and Pat’s life and times.
Stay safe and best regards
Chris