Aside from his interest in history and philosophy, Roly was a keen linguist. Quizzes and word puzzles were part of his daily routine, so it was no surprise to those who knew him that the Order of Service for his memorial gathering contained a crossword - designed by Roly himself, especially for the event (Etymology: 4 Down).
He was passionate about classical music, too, so neither was it surprising that the memorial – held at the Shepparton Golf Club - opened with Chopin’s most famous Nocturne for solo piano - Opus 9, No. 2. And the clue for 9 Down was his favourite composer – Beethoven.
His long involvement with the Australian National Piano Award (ANPA: 28 Down) exposed him to the finest young pianists Australia had to offer – and he enabled some of them to practice on his own grand piano. He hosted contestants, drummed up sponsors and chaired the Associates committee for many years.
Golf was another passion and he was a Thursday afternoon regular at the Golf Club. The Boss said his many golfing companions considered Roly “a trier” but he loved it.
A longtime member of the Beefsteak & Burgundy Club, Roly had an excellent palate memory for both food and wine. Indeed, he was Foodmaster for a time - although he had an aversion to the humble squash (29 Across) and he preferred Shiraz (17 Down) to Pinot Noir, which he didn’t care for much at all (23 Across).
He had what an older generation would have called a wicked sense of humour. An early reminder came for those at the service when his second son Sam read a nicely-crafted “letter to his Dad:” Sam referred to Roly’s post-mortem list of instructions, contained in a folder marked “Mort de Roly.”
Among many other instructions – including his insistence that attendees to the memorial should come dressed for a party rather than a funeral – were his passwords. Topping the list was “GoHawks1989,” reflecting his one-eyed support for the Hawthorn Football Club, and the nailbiter when the Hawks held off Geelong by four points to win the flag (8 Down.)
After family and friends had spoken, the Order of Service then listed a guest speaker, “TBA.” Roly hadn’t finished with his teasing. There he was, in a recorded audio message, thanking his family and friends and thanking everyone for coming – but leaving an intriguing farewell remark, not entirely consistent with his long-professed religion (Atheism: 16 Down.)
Or was it just a throwaway line? Sam had finished his letter urging Roly to enjoy his time with Moggy, Snotty, Grotty and Poxy - and the clue in the crossword was “Roly’s best friend of 18 years” (The Cat: 32 Down.)
Perhaps it was his last little teaser about the ultimate question. The Boss wasn’t sure. He said there was a lot of Roly in the room. Woof!
