Anton was one of six siblings, his three older brothers all going to Barrow Hills and then on to St George’s, and his two sisters going to St Maur’s. Their parents lived in Chertsey, not so far away, but when Anton was seven their father was posted to Madrid, taking Anton and his brother Quentin with them. In September 1971, their father drove them back from Madrid to Barrow Hills, Anton as a new boy in the first form and Quentin re-joining into the fourth form.
Sadly, Anton passed away unexpectedly in February 2017 from heart failure in his sleep. He was only 54.
Shared in his memory are the following extracts from letters he wrote home during his first few terms at Barrow Hills:
“Dear Mummy and Daddy, I hope you are well? I am enjoying myself at school … on Saturday the 18th we played football and our team is winning and the other team has none. After that I went swimming and it was freezing. Love from Anton” [19th Sep 1971, age 8]
“This school is very nice because sometime they give you very nice food … On Monday afternoon Form One played football and nobody had a goal. On Tuesday morning we had to practise playing football better … I lost my heranade [hearing aid] once but I found it and it worked very well, and everybody wanted to use it … On Friday I got pocket money and I got 15p …” [26th Sep 1971]
“I am enjoying very well at school here it is very nice … And we have a garden and each week we each have to pay a little bit of money so that we can buy some seeds. And last week there was another film about the happy hippo … Last Tuesday I played rugger and my team won. At the end of September, we had art and the art room is very horrible.” [10th Oct 1971]
“Last Monday I played rugger and the other team won twenty nil and we did five nil. Last Tuesday I did PT which was very good, we played it like rugger but we did it in the playground … Today afternoon we have a Judo match and I want to join in it. On Friday I had a short hair cut.” [17th Oct 1971]
“I just came from rec and at rec I was a cat, and two other boys called Dewing and Mack were the two mice and if they touch the old smashed car, or touch me, then they are in my den and they have to count to fifty and then they are out. Last Sunday we built a camp and there was a judo match … yesterday we had a dance, and we played games and trains, and it was good. There was a band which men bought their own trumpets.” [24th Oct 1971]
“Dear Mummy and Daddy, I am getting a bit bad at arithmetic and on Thursday when I was doing arithmetic, I got a whack because I did not understand what she meant. And for the time she told me what to do. I had to put the sum down, not sideways like the teacher. On Monday, we did not do any work because it was a feast of St Erconwald on that day, we had delicious food at lunch and we had an ice cream cake …” [21st Nov 1971]
“Dear Mum + Dad, I hope you are well. Last week I couldn’t send a letter because I didn’t have a stamp, and I didn’t have time to ask Mrs Sbresni because I was playing a war game. Last week I missed a pink card by one mark, and the week before I just missed a BUFF card by one mark (Phew I’m safe). On Tuesday there was an under tens match and we won, one nil … During the night yesterday it was the Dance and right at the beginning I played ‘God Save The Queen’ on my trumpet and when I went down from the stage everybody said “well done Croft” and I was so happy about this. And during breakfast everybody was still talking about it. The Dance yesterday was much better than last year. PS: please put me in a rugby game instead of football like last year because I love rugby.” [22nd Oct 1972, age 9]
In Sept 1975, Anton moved up to St George’s, and then went to Brooklands College. Whilst his five older siblings all towed the line … doing A-levels, University, getting “proper” jobs, spouses and mortgages … Anton showed a lot more individuality. He became less interested in academic study, and much more interested in music, especially punk. He was still at school when he formed his first band, Ghert Mint. After college, Anton worked in computers for companies in Working and Walton, embracing the local after-work music scene. A few years later he moved in with friends to “The Farm” in Weybridge, and then on to Kingston. All the while enjoying his passion for music, composing and playing, and going to gigs.
In 2002, when Anton was 39, he moved back in with his parents in Weybridge. They were in their late 70s and struggling a bit. He gradually took over more and more of the chores and when his father passed away five years later Anton focussed on his Mother, making sure she wanted for nothing. He put his personal life on hold, and when his Mother passed away in 2014, he was quite devastated. He moved down to Haslemere with his cat and started to rebuild his own life, catching up on all the years he had missed. Re-establishing old acquaintances, playing music again, enjoying gigs and keeping us all entertained through his regular posts on Facebook.
Our thanks to Quentin and all the Crofts for sharing details of Anton’s life and journey.