We are greatly saddened to hear of the death of Old Seafordian Colonel Mike Ball who attended the school in the 1960s.

Mike, who was in Charmandean House, went on to have a successful career in the military, becoming the last officer to be commissioned into the Middlesex Regiment (Duke of Cambridge’s Own) before it amalgamated with the Queen’s Royal Surrey, Queen’s Own Buffs and Royal Sussex Regiments to form The Queen’s Regiment. 

This extract is taken from the obituary written by his regiment:

“Mike was deployed in Oman in the 1970s after which he assumed command of 1st Battalion The Queen’s Regiment in 1985 as it moved from Omagh to Gibraltar. The Battalion moved to Tidworth in early 1987 then deployed on tour in South Armagh.

“In retirement, Mike became the Regimental Secretary between 2001 and 2012. It is in this role that he is best known by generations of officers and SNCOs of the Princess of Wales’s Royal Regiment who benefitted from his guidance and sage advice.”

We send our sincerely condolences to his family.