Why are you writing about Eric Wandless Renton?

Eric was my uncle and my mother’s younger brother. He was brutally murdered 25 years ago, when I was 16 years old. I want to write something in his memory, as a tribute to him. Also, I want to explain my family’s background circumstances that led to him being raised in an orphanage, that is, his mother died a few days after he was born, and his father, then a lay preacher, turned to drinking due to the death of his wife. When he was assassinated, the newspapers did not have the time or the desire to give these matters the explanations they deserve and, recently, everything has come to light again in the local media. So, it’s time to delve into events and family history.

What do you remember of the events of 25 years ago?

My uncle, Frank Hughes, discovered Eric’s body. Frank was Eric’s brother-in-law, who had known him for decades. Frank received a phone call from an employee at Eric’s supermarket, saying that Eric had not arrived for work. This led Frank to go to the bungalow with his wife Hilda (my mother’s sister). Frank looked out the window first and told Hilda not to go inside. Hilda called my mother and initially told her that Eric had passed away. A few days later, my mother learned of the stark reality, which was met with callousness and disbelief. Obviously, it was a huge shock to everyone. Eric was buried about a month later. Crime Watch released some of the items that the killer stole from Eric’s home, and a member of the public recognized one of the items, a lamp he had recently purchased at the thrift store, prompting police to catch the killer.

How do you and your family feel about the 25th anniversary of his murder?

I think it’s very important for people to realize that whatever Eric’s death was it was nothing more than the act of a malicious and evil person who had a vicious plan in mind, to inflict an easy target.

The killer was not provoked. How ridiculous if someone (anyone) was called “provoked” to commit murder, and then started charging their victims with TV, microwave, lamp, etc. in the car as an after-trauma thought. The killer had a dagger and a rolling pin in his bag. He stabbed Eric with the rolling pin and stabbed him seven times. That’s the action of a cold, calculated and ruthless killer: Malcolm Roberts. It’s that action that got him, with the help and dedication of the police, Crime Watch, and the public.

What do you remember about Charnock Richard’s house?

It was a nice and orderly place, in a cul-de-sac. I remember his cabinet full of miniature cars, which were expensive collectibles. I just remember sitting at the dining room table and after eating we played chess there too.

What kind of person was Mr. Renton wandless?

He was a smart and intelligent man. My brother Michael said it was “funny” too. He was not a threat to anyone, and he probably couldn’t harm a fly if he tried. He was tall, slim, and not at all athletic. His enthusiasm for chess inspired many others to play and compete. Like his father, sister Hilda, and children Martin and Graham, Eric was tall. Martin said Erik was spending a lot. My sister thought he was a bit snobbish, but he didn’t. He met Eric very few times. Also like his father, Erik suffered from chronic bronchitis.

A phrase comes to mind that sometimes “only the good die young.” I think that inspiring people to compete in any activity is commendable, and many people have praised Eric for his participation and contribution to the world of chess.

The many friends Eric made just goes to show how nice he was. It was more than a loss to our family; will be remembered and missed by many.

Eric had many friends. My mother told me that Eric used to go to Holland to play chess, especially with his friend the legendary Charles Aznavour, who sang “She”. I recently contacted Tom Rose, who was a very close friend of Eric’s. Tom Rose was the first person to win the Eric Wandless Renton Memorial Trophy. Here’s what Tom Rose had to say about Eric:

“Hey [Eric] he was one of my closest friends. I first met him when I was about 12 years old. Years later, my wife and I would often visit unexpectedly and share a meal.

“Eric was a role model in his enthusiasm and in getting things done, rather than just talking about them or planning them. Not only did he organize the Chorley tournament participation (and helped get the Blackpool tournament going), but He also pestered people to sponsor him and was tirelessly requesting registrations. He knew that just mailing registration forms wasn’t enough, so wherever he went, he would reach out to players and persuade them to participate. As a result , Chorley’s tournament had a very large turnout and a lot of patronage, after his death, it declined markedly.

Many people did not know the real Eric. They only saw the slightly eccentric character and his homosexuality (which by the way was always discreet) and he never grew up in the presence of his heterosexual friends. When you met him, you would discover that he was one of the kindest and most generous souls you have ever seen. could hope to find us. Not a day goes by without me missing him and remembering him with some sadness. His other close friends were Tony Hill (local businessman and owner of Hill’s bakery and retail stores). Sadly, his closest chess friends (Roy Waterhouse, Jack Wolstenholme) died a few years ago.

Eric played several chess tournaments in the Netherlands and had many friends among the Dutch chess players. He invited some of them to play in Chorley and arranged accommodation for them with his friends, so that when we lived in Chorley we had Dutch visitors who stayed in our spare room during the bank holiday in August.

He met the great concert piano player Sviatoslav Richter through their mutual friend Roy Waterhouse (an enthusiastic amateur pianist) … when Richter played a concert in Manchester in the late 1960s or early 1970s. “

Why did Eric grow up in an orphanage? What do you remember about your uncle?

It is difficult to say the precise reason, but if you look at the events, the reason seems understandable given the circumstances. Doreen (my mother) was 15 months old and her sister Hilda was about 7 when Eric was born. His mother, Evelyn, died just days after giving birth to Eric, effectively leaving father James Luther Wandless, without his loving wife, but with his two girls and a newborn baby. James Luther Wandless was a Methodist lay preacher, and the loss of his wife was too much for him. Until then they never had alcohol in their house. The loss of his wife was too much and he drank again and soon after he joined the military and survived WWII. After the war, James Wandless worked at the Ferrington foundry, Leyland. He died when he was in his 60s. We do not know what conversations there were at that time about what was going to happen to the children. Evelyn had a sister named Lillian, who was married to Arthur Noblet. They had a daughter named Edna, who still lives in Chorley. Edna’s parents boldly accepted the two more girls, Doreen and Hilda, into their home in Bootle, and raised all three effectively. A newborn baby (Eric) may well have been too much to take on, as they would in fact be busy with all three girls. Getting help from an orphanage must have been the logical approach, but they never lost contact with Eric. Eric was not abandoned. His father may even knew someone at the orphanage, which made him think that this was the best option at the time, rather than trying to care for him only when he was devastated by the loss of his wife. We have a photo of Eric and Doreen, when he was only three and a half years old, and what a striking resemblance they have to each other. He looks in good health in all the photos. When the war started, Edna and Hilda were old enough to be evacuated to Southport. My mother stayed with Aunt Lil and Uncle Arthur, taking refuge in the bomb shelter in their backyard. A bomb even fell in my mother’s bedroom on Litherland Road in Bootle. When he was five years old, they moved to Chorley and, to begin with, lived in a dentist’s basement on Park Road (Teddy Tyrer).

After the war, my mother, Doreen, used to go everywhere with her brother Eric when they were teenagers. Although they used to argue quite a bit when they were young, they were also best friends. Doreen used to defend Eric because he was not an aggressive person. Eric said that she, my mother, should have been a boy because she was so tough. So when Eric grew up, he also stayed with Aunt Lils and Uncle Arthurs for the summer vacation. Doreen also once stayed with Eric for a week, albeit in the girls’ dormitory at an orphanage in Frodsham. So we don’t know that Eric complained about anything about his life in an orphanage. The war was certainly difficult for everyone, but he turned out to be an educated, well-spoken gentleman with many intelligent friends.

My brothers Michael and James Fowler helped Eric move from St Thomas Road to the bungalow in Charnock Richard. I remember visiting Eric once at his Bungalow. She cooked me a meal in the microwave and we played a game of chess in her kitchen. He was about 13 years old and had learned to play shortly before. Eric taught my brother Michael to play chess, and he and our cousin Martin Hughes used to keep Eric company on his insurance round in the Bacup area.

Eric’s mother and father, Doreen and Hilda are buried together in Bootle Cemetery. Hilda Renton adopted Eric at age 16 and her adoptive mother is buried with Eric in Chorley Cemetery.

Did you and your family know about your uncles’ sexuality?

Eric told his sisters shortly before the murder. It was not even thought, posed, discussed, suggested or hinted in any way to me or my siblings; sexuality was not a topic of discussion. My mother, my cousin Martin, and his wife Sandra recall that Eric once had a girlfriend whose father owned many butcher shops near Frodsham, Cheshire. Coincidentally Frodsham is where the orphanage was. Martin and Sandra recall visiting them at the girls’ father’s farm, so it may be that their sexuality was something that changed later in life.

Perhaps Eric was not as successful as he would have liked to be with women in the UK, a not uncommon problem that can affect and change people. I know from personal experience that the ratio of single women to single men in the UK is very much against men, and I will write more articles on that shortly. However, what happens behind closed doors is nobody’s business, as long as it is mutual.

Will you and your family celebrate the anniversary?

We visited the cemetery and met a relative. It is not a date of celebration. In a way, the family feels they are bringing bad news. We all have fond memories of Eric and we know that a lot of people thought a lot about Eric, which is very important to us, and remembering those you have lost is the most important thing.

What has happened since the murder?

His estate was liquidated shortly after the murder. Eric was a businessman, and business requires investment, as far as we know there is very little left for anyone. Eric left some of his miniature cars with Tony Hill at the Hills Bakery. Hilda and her husband Frank have passed away in recent years.

We were told Malcolm Roberts was sentenced to 15 years for murder, so he’s probably out, that may be of little comfort to anyone.

January 11, 2009 marks 25 years since the loss of Eric Wandless Renton. Clearly a great man, from Chorley.

I answered these questions in memory of my uncle: Eric Wandless Renton.

Doreen Bottomley (formerly Fowler and Wandless) may well be the last surviving Wandless in the bloodline. Green’s father, James Luther Wandless, was born in Ireland. James Luther Wandless may have had a relative in Cork, Ireland, who moved to the United States, but we have no documentation of this.