What a shock to me to everyone who knew him. James died on the 16th May 2021 and he will be missed firstly by me but also by all the people whose lives he touched.

James rode a motorbike, we rode together, me in the lead, James covering my back. We rode thousands of miles together. Through France to Spain and then on to Portugal. Through Spain to the Pyrenees up mountains and down again, in and out of small villages, getting lost, getting found again, having accidents, always enjoying ourselves. We sat beside rivers eating sandwiches and drinking strong coffee, we wandered through markets, we sat in empty churches and wondered at the peace. We swam and loitered on beaches. We did a lot of things together.

For a couple of years we lived in Thailand and travelled to Burma so that we could see the country after the release of Aung Sang Su Chi. It was a magical time in Burma, everyone so optimistic about the future. We rode around on old motorbikes and met so many hospitable people and saw wondrous sights. Now Burma is going through horrific violence from an oppressive regime. James tweeted and shouted about the current situation, he passionately believed in human rights and made his voice heard, he did not hold back.

He was a journalist for over 2 decades for the Guardian, chief sub editor, a stressful job which either made you an alcoholic or drove you to a breakdown. Those of you who know James know which of those applies. He freely admitted that he was not a nice man to work with when he was drinking. He did respect one particular person, Peter Preston, who was his boss while he worked there, James was very sad to hear that he died. he felt the world had lost a great man.

The man I knew was gentle, a gentleman, a man who was careful and liked his routines. I didn’t know James much before he got himself a motorbike.

I miss him, of course I do, 21 years of knowing somebody is difficult to forget but the grief is not so raw now.

Here are a bunch of pictures to remember him by. Hover over the picture for the caption.

The last photo was the first trip we took together when I dropped my bike and James put his back out picking it up. Sort of sums it up.

He deserves to be remembered and I hope you will, with affection.