Personal and Family Life
Fred Trueman married Enid Chapman in 1955 and had three children: Karen, Rebecca and Rodney. After divorce in 1972, Trueman remarried in 1973. His second wife was Veronica Wilson who had two children: Sheenagh and Patrick. They lived in the Craven village of Flasby, near Skipton, in the Yorkshire Dales.
Trueman was made an OBE in 1989. But, after his Test Match Special colleague Brian Johnston had nicknamed him "Sir Frederick", there were those who thought he had really been knighted and many, particularly in his native county, who could not understand why he had not.
Trueman received additional publicity in June 1990 when his daughter Rebecca married Damon Welch, the son of film star Raquel Welch. However, the marriage was short-lived and ended in divorce two years later.
In the 1990s, Trueman discovered that his maternal grandmother had been Jewish, making him Jewish in Jewish law. He said that he was happy to be called Jewish.
Having been a pipe-smoker all of his adult life, Trueman was elected Pipe Smoker of the Year in 1974 by the British Pipesmokers' Council. This award was discontinued in 2004, two years before Trueman was diagnosed with lung cancer, because its organisers feared it fell foul of new laws on tobacco promotion. Trueman was diagnosed with small cell carcinoma of the lung in May 2006. He died of the disease on 1 July 2006 at Airedale General Hospital in Steeton with Eastburn, West Yorkshire. He was buried in the cemetery at Bolton Abbey.
On 8 August 2009, Fred Trueman was inducted into the ICC Cricket Hall of Fame. The ceremony took place at Headingley during a Test match and Trueman's award was received by his widow, Veronica, who said: "It is an honour to receive this on Fred's behalf and I'm sorry that he isn't here for this great occasion. Fred regarded Headingley as his headquarters and it is a huge pleasure to be receiving this on his behalf in front of the Headingley crowd". Also honoured that day were Wilfred Rhodes, Geoffrey Boycott and Ian Botham.
On 18 March 2010, a bronze statue of Trueman by Yorkshire-born sculptor Graham Ibbeson was unveiled by Veronica Trueman at the Leeds and Liverpool Canal basin in Skipton. Also in attendance were Trueman's brother Dennis and the former Test umpire Dickie Bird.
Read more about this topic: Fred Trueman
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