TWO MAGNIFICENT Shire and Clydesdale horses took Timothy Murphy on his final journey upon a 1914 brewer’s dray.
Timothy (48) lived in Haylands, Ryde and was a telecoms salesman on the Island and the mainland.
Arriving in style upon the beautifully restored horse drawn carriage at Newport Crematorium, it was a surprise to many of the 300 plus mourners who were waiting outside.
‘We kept it quiet from everyone – only five or six people knew,” said Steve Redfern of Windmill Farm in Ryde who owns the dray and horses with partner Sam Tetlow. The couple has been family friends of Timothy and his wife Gina for over 30 years. “It was mentioned to Tim before he died and he loved the idea,” added Steve.
“It’s a 1914 brewer’s bottle dray which was built by JW Thompson in Durham with build number 107. It is used extensively around major County Shows in Britain from Devon to Kent, Abergavenny to Peterborough and anything in between,” said Steve.
The eleven year old shire and Clydesdale horses are called Bob and Jeff, and this was only their second outing for Windmill Farm who have seven shires, with all being champions in different ways.
“Timothy was a very good people person. He enjoyed life and thought the world of his family,” said his brother in law Gary Barton. “He worked for Eurotel and was their top salesman for eight of the past ten years.
“He supported Portsmouth FC all his life and followed them all around the country.” Timothy and Gina have two sons, Dean (29) and Danny (19).
