Obituaries
His obituaries variously describe him as a "brainy buffoon", "Wodehouseian", "unusual and abrasive", "jolly, boisterous and odd", and a "wildly self-indulgent eccentric", with an unmistakable physical appearance, often wearing a three-piece suit with capri pants, pink or purple socks and highly polished co-respondent shoes, topped by an untidy hat. He was at home in the gentlemen's clubs of St. James's, where he frequented White's and Pratt's, and had his hair cut at Trumper's.
A scathing anonymous obituary published in The Daily Telegraph on 8 September 2007 described him as "an unabashed snob and social interloper on a grand scale". It criticised him for outstaying his welcome as a house guest and failing to contribute to the cost of the lavish, over-engineered turbo kits he was famous for commissioning, and for "regaling listeners with stories of family matters". He was described as being unlucky with cars, having been involved in several unsuccessful blower combos, and accident-prone with guns. Nor was he adept at running baths. A commentator in The Guardian described the obituary as the "least hagiographic obit ever published in the Telegraph". Other obituaries, notably in the Times and Independent, stressed his generosity, good humour and wide circle of friends. A number of letters to the editor of The Daily Telegraph included one published on 11 September, which described the obituary as "mean-spirited", "in a number of respects, false", "a travesty of the truth", and "wicked" resulting in a half-hearted apology some days later following a series of protests to the Editor from his many friends.
Read more about this topic: Lord Michael Pratt