Anthony (Larry) Shore MBE - Loughborough 41 Club
Loughborough 41 Club is sad to report to loss of Larry Shore.
Larry was born Anthony Shore, in the Cotswolds. His father was lost at sea when he was a child. Larry was taken under the wing of the Masons and boarded at the Royal Masonic School, where he became known as Larry due to his curly hair, as in Larry the Lamb!
When called for National Service he downplayed his qualifications and went in as an infantryman. He is mentioned in Tony Thornes book ‘Brasso, Blanco and Bull’: “For his pains Bertie was teamed with Larry Shore as the next two-man bazooka team. Larry was designated as the lying-down man and Bertie was the 'light-the-blue-touch-paper-and-run man'. Unfortunately, Larry was a fairly little bloke and he was not all that well anchored to the ground. As he pulled the trigger there was an enormous explosion and a streak of flame leapt from the back of the rocket launcher. Larry shot forward towards the target, while his rocket lobbed harmlessly towards square leg, missing the tank by at least twenty yards.”
His leadership skills must have been better than his bazooka skills, as he progressed to officer ranks on merit.
He went on to study Mechanical Sciences at Cambridge. After university he worked as an engineer, and met and married Pam, with whom he spent the next 58 years.
Work was an important part of Larry’s life, especially the railways. He was an accomplished inventor, with many patents to his name. One achievement, that his family are very proud of, is his role as chief mechanical engineer on the Advanced Passenger Train, the tilting train that held the world speed record at the time. It had a mixed reception and wasn’t in the end a success for British Rail. But now almost all high-speed trains around the world tilt, thanks in part to Larry’s inventions.
In time he became a senior manager and engineer at British Rail. He was honoured with an MBE for his services to the railway industry, being especially pleased that he was nominated for this by his colleagues.
