Edding Barwards to the Students' Union in the Sky

I was sad to hear today of the recent death of a friend of mine from student days at UWIST, Cardiff. When I arrived in 1977, Tim Edwards was President of the Students Union and as such the Big Cheese of the student world. At UWIST, student politics weren't really about Left or Right, so much as an anarchistic approach to relaxing and getting wrecked. Tim excelled in this area. Despite being exiled in Cardiff, carrying out missionary work as he saw it, Tim left no one in any doubt that he hailed from Leatherhead, and that Leatherhead FC was the the only football team worth following. In later years, it transpires that Tim went on to become chairman of Leatherhead FC, to the extent that he coordinated efforts to save the club from closure.

Tim's dry sense of humour was legendary, and all-inclusive. As editor of Impact, the union magazine, he wrote about the imaginary Splott Polytechnic, a spoof on the neighbouring University College, Cardiff, whose union took itself far more seriously than did UWIST. Even when he was succeeded by Dave Gerrard, Tim took an intense interest in Splott Polytechnic. No longer writing the article, he took matters a step further by setting up 396421 Squadron Conga Commando, and promptly led a lengthy conga line across the platform at the NUS national conference, to the bemusement of Trevor Phillips who was national chair at the time.

Tim's girlfriend at the time was occasionally on the receiving end of his humour. Seeing Tim in his office in a meeting, she rang him from his secretary's desk. Tim answered and told her 'I'm on the phone', at which she apologised and replaced the handset.

The chairman of the mythical Splott Poly Students Union, modelled by Tim on himself, was a beer-swilling character called Ed Barwards. In fact Tim lampooned his entire executive in typically unsubtle fashion, but in such a manner that to feature as a Splott Poly character was a sign of having 'arrived' on the union scene.

I personally owe Tim a lot more than he realises. He asked me to take over as editor of Impact when Dave Gerrard stepped down to concentrate on his exams. I modelled my own style on Tim's own, and have never regretted it.

Tim would not shuffle off this mortal coil; in spirit at least he will have announced to anyone standing around 'Right, the bar's open. Follow me!!'

Tim, thanks for everything mate. You'll be missed.