In memory of Vaughan Rees OBE
When Vaughan Rees died on January 17th, at the age of 82, the Estate lost one of its most affable, likeable and generous residents. He was always smartly turned out, especially in his cream summer suit, even if it was only to take the much-loved Phoebe for a walk. If you chanced to meet him in the Gardens he was a fount of gossip and stories, many of them hilarious. As a host with his husband Tony, in their house in Burlington Street or their flat in the Leas, he had no equal. His Welsh eloquence (he was very proud of his Welsh roots) came to the fore when offering a particularly fine champagne or recommending the latest restaurant. When this was combined with Tony’s exquisite cooking, his friends were remarkably spoiled.
Vaughan’s working life, and his retirement too, were completely devoted to the arts. He was private secretary to the minister for arts and culture and, after leaving Whitehall, was appointed to the Corporation of the Royal Albert Hall. Administrative life in “the Hall” brought frustrations as well as rewards, but here too he did not forget his friends. Memorable concert outings were arranged in his box, with interval refreshments in Queen Victoria’s Retiring Room (complete with majestic mahogany loo). After he left he became, with Tony, a patron of the Brighton and Hove Arts Council, the Dome, the Brighton Festival and the Brighton Philharmonic. No opening night was complete without him.
All this might have kept him busy enough, but in his later years especially he became an intrepid traveller, especially to Italy and Portugal, where he and Tony favoured older hotels in lesser-visited but lovely spots. Both Burlington Street and the Leas were filled with superb collections of paintings, prints and ceramics, many collected en route. But Vaughan was no elitist connoisseur; although his reading was the Times his politics were of the left, sometimes surprisingly so. His keen social conscience and sense of public duty led him to become a Martlets Champion and, not least, to become a trustee and deputy chairman of the Kemp Town Society, with a special commitment to commissioning really good works of public art for the Black Rock redevelopment.
He joined the KTS committee at an age when most people prefer their armchairs, and he worked most energetically for us, especially as the head of the sub-committee that organised the memorable bicentennial Garden Party in 2023. But he had already supported the Garden Party for years, regularly offering a whole case of Fortnum & Mason’s claret (and latterly, two cases) as the star prize in the raffle. It was also an especially cheering sight to see him and Tony appear at the eastern gate with jugs full of chopped fruit for Pimm’s, a job that had often taken them hours.
With typical generosity, he always worried far more about Tony’s health than his own. His illness was therefore all the more unexpected, and he leaves a gap that is very hard to fill. But his smile, his cascading laugh and his buoyant hospitality will be long remembered, as will his love for Brighton and the Estate.