Charles, you were first a wannabe supplier to my team, then a supplier, then a partner in the truest and most rarely seen sense of that word in our industry; you were even nearly a colleague and a boss. Somewhere along that journey you became a trusted friend. We never saw enough of each other in those days. Dinner was often cancelled at short notice as you maintained some madcap global role with endless travel – but the time spent together was thought provoking and fascinating with madcap ideas hatched at regular intervals. You were a man of many talents – some of the statues that grace the front of the House of Commons were yours, as were large parts of the restoration of St Pauls. Somehow, despite being a stonemason by training, you ended up in IT outsourcing – there’s a joke or two in their somewhere, but some other time perhaps. You even introduced me to polo – a sport that I didn’t understand then, and still don’t. In the weeks leading up to the horrible incident that first took the person we knew away from all of your friends, we saw a lot more of each other; I remember you’d just call or text on the offchance some of us were out and about and then join us wherever we were. Then came that incident and we thought we’d lost you. Everyone hoped, prayed even, that you’d make it back. Sadly that was not to be and now, many months later, you’re gone for good. There were and are few people as genuine as you and now there’s one less and that loss is deeply felt by everyone who knew you. Rest in peace Charles. I’ll miss you.