Richard A de B Waldron (1952-56) died in December 2025 aged 86 as the College was informed by his family in August 2026. He lived latterly in Biggin Hill on the Kent/Surrey border and had suffered from poor health in recent years.

Richard arrived at the Nautical College in the Winter term of 1952 from Sompting Abbots prep school in Worthing, Sussex with the intention of going to sea. A strong cross-country runner, he also stroked the first four to represent the school at a regatta in 1955. He continued to row well into his sixties, often on the Thames.

On leaving the NCP he joined Booth Line (then owned by the Vestey Group) as a navigation officer, usually sailing to Brazilian ports from Liverpool, but came ashore after a few years, changed direction and enrolled at the Croydon School of Art. Over the next 40 years he worked in the publishing and corporate design sector and also edited several art magazines. This work included redesigning the corporate design of Thames Water (now headed by an OP Chris Weston (77-82)).

Establishing his own design company in west London in the 1980s, he undertook assignments for major clients including Glaxo Smith Kline, the NHS, Thames Water and the Ballet Rambert. In 1987, working with Robin Knight (56-61), he redesigned the OP Magazine beginning with Issue 18.

In his seventies Richard ended his corporate design activities and returned to full-time painting, using a variety of materials including acrylic, oils, watercolours, pastels and charcoal. In 2011 he held an exhibition at the Painters’ Hall in the City of London and another show of his work the same year with the Dorking Group of Artists at Denbies vineyard gallery near Dorking.