WANTAGE butcher William Clark has died at the John Radcliffe Hospital in Oxford, aged 76.

Mr Clark died on January 29 from pneumonia after a long illness.

Mr Clark, known as Bill, owned and ran WE Clark & Sons, at 16 Mill Street, from 1968 to 1995.

The shop was regarded as a premier butcher, poulterer, game and pie purveyor and delicatessen.

And its sausages were a particular favourite, made to family recipes.

Mr Clark offered a warm welcome and jaunty smile, but his professional service and knowledge of his trade were especially appreciated by customers.

He went on to open new shops in Wallingford in 1976, then Henley and Steventon.

Mr Clark and his family lived for 22 years at Greensands, East Hendred, then for the last six years in Charlton.

After two years’ national service in the RAF as a cook, he worked for several years for his father in Hampshire, before starting his own business in Wantage.

Mr Clark is survived by his wife, Sylvia, five children, grandchildren, and a great-granddaughter.

The funeral is at Charlton village church at 2pm tomorrow.