Harry Benfield RIP

I've just been informed that Harry Benfield passed away last month, after an illness lasting several years.
I first met Harry in about 1965. He was into Wado-ryu Karate, while I was doing Shotokan. We became friends, and later worked together on the Top Rank in Liverpool City Centre.
Harry went into Uechi-ryu Karate, travelling to both Boston, USA and Okinawa to study the system.
He was also a talented artist, and his portraits of famed martial-arts masters were sought after.
There are some tales about Harry in Working with Warriors.
Rest in peace, mate

While sorting through various albums I found this photo, taken while Harry was hosting a visiting American Uechi-ryu instructor.



[Den, Bobby Cambell [from Boston], Harry, Terry]

Our local radio station is celebrating their 50 year anniversary, and I was reminded of the first time I visited their studio. Harry had a party trick of breaking a stack of tiles with his head, and the Liverpool Echo published a photo and an article. We were then contacted by Radio Merseyside, and Harry took a load of tiles to the studio, where he was invited to break them on air. That's right, tile smashing on the radio! This was the BBC, who, of course, had a top series Archie Andrews, featuring a ventriloquist.