It is with great sadness that Bloxham School announces the passing of The Honourable Denis Norman.
Denis (Wn 41-48) served as Zimbabwe’s Agriculture Minister in the government of Robert Mugabe after independence in 1980, and later served terms as Transport Minister and Power Minister before resigning in 1997 and eventually returning to the UK. One of three brothers from an Oxfordshire farming family to attend Bloxham School, Denis was a School Prefect and played on the wing in the unbeaten 1st XV of 1947.
Only last year, Denis featured in the Old Bloxhamist newsletter Back to Bloxham, where he gave the introduction: ‘I left Bloxham in 1948, and in 1953 I emigrated to Rhodesia to work on a tobacco farm. My intention was to stay for two years, but during that time I got married and ended up staying for 50. It was a period of great change, which included International trade sanctions, a civil war, and a country name change. I became involved in many of the events, including defending the country; becoming President of the Farmer’s Union; and at Independence, being appointed Minister of Agriculture. Over 17 years, I had this job twice, as well as Minister of Transport, and of Energy ‘ all without being elected or joining a political party. I have narrated these testing and interesting experiences in my autobiography entitled ‘The Odd Man In’.
The funeral will take place at 11am on Wednesday 8th January at All Saints Church in Middleton Stoney.
Denis Norman (1931-2019) RIP