Obituary

Thomas George Darling, chairman and founder of the Gardline Group of companies, died in Lowestoft on 15th August 2006. He was aged 77 and had suffered from cancer for nearly two years.

George Darling was born in London in 1929 into an 'east end' family, the only boy among five sisters. His father was a bus driver. At ten, with the outbreak of war and fears of London coming under bombardment, he was evacuated to Devon. This experience made an impression upon George and he often mentioned that he owed a great deal to the kindly lady who took care of him and passed on her values of integrity and hard work.



George left school at fourteen to start work as a greengrocer's boy in Deptford. He was conscripted into the Royal Navy from 1947 to 1949 as a radio operator. On demobilisation he joined the Metropolitan Police, and soon afterwards met his future wife, Meriel, then nursing in London. They married in 1952 and their plans were to emigrate to Canada or Australia for a fresh start away from post-war rationing and the housing shortage. The birth of their first son, Gregory, in 1953 interrupted these plans and George decided to remain in Britain and work for himself. His business slowly grew, and during a visit to his wife's hometown of Lowestoft he saw an opportunity to buy a small firm. In 1958 he moved there.



This early firm, then known as TG Darling and Son Ltd, thrived and soon expanded to employ a staff of fifty. The main activity was recycling paper and some ferrous and non-ferrous metals. At this time, in partnership with an old friend, a forklift-hire company was also established, and this too grew successfully.



The recycling firm was occasionally involved in dismantling old ships, and in 1969 George was persuaded to become part owner of an elderly but still seaworthy vessel. This was Surveyor: a riveted ship built in 1937 that was to become the first vessel owned by Gardline Shipping. The name Gardline is almost an anagram of Darling, and George claimed it was the idea of his secretary, hastily accepted during a phone call made from a freezing telephone box on a winter's evening whilst driving across the Yorkshire moors.



Based in Lowestoft, the company purchased two further ships: Researcher and Observer, both small, ex-Norwegian coastal ferries. The ships were soon put to work on charters for government scientific research or on surveying cruises in the early days of North Sea gas exploration. Always capable of spotting an opportunity, George quickly decided that there was more value in undertaking these projects in-house, and in 1974 the Survey Division was formed in Great Yarmouth.



In the early days the business was a roller coaster, at the whim of an erratic market dominated by the oil & gas industry, and was almost forced to close in 1986 when the price of oil collapsed. However, 37 years since formation, the marine survey business has grown in capability and recognition. Gardline now operates ten large ships and two smaller vessels with the people, services and support for worldwide operations.



Several other companies were developed as part of diversification on the part of the group: the new companies including satellite communications, security, mobile phone communications, non-destructive testing, geotechnics, and a shipyard. Still wholly owned by the Darling family, the Gardline group now employs over eight hundred people and has a turnover of over £80 million.



George maintained a strong interest in the Great Yarmouth and Lowestoft area. He served as a board member of the Great Yarmouth Port Authority. He was president of the local Sea Cadets for twenty years, and a leading member of the Excelsior Trust, a charity set up to restore a Lowestoft sailing trawler and operate it as a training vessel for young people.



Always a compulsive worker, George remained actively involved and very much in control of his businesses. Despite his age and illness he frequently worked a seven-day week until December 2005, and he continued to hold business meetings at his home until the last few days of his life.



He is survived by his wife Meriel, three sons, Gregory, Nigel and Adam, and daughter, Melanie.



George Darling 1929 - 2006