Husband-and-wife academics and Oxford University lecturers, who died within two weeks of each other

Dr Currie was born in Bristol in 1940 and, as for many of his generation, the starting point of his academic career was passing the 11-plus. He won a place at Cotham Grammar School, Bristol, and then gained a scholarship to read History at The Queen’s College, Oxford, becoming the first member of his family to go to university. Dr Currie earned a first in History, and went on to take another in Divinity, with a view to becoming a minister. He met Pamela Ward at Wesley Memorial Hall in Oxford in 1961 and they married two years later. They raised their son Daniel and daughter Elizabeth at their home in Southfield Road, Oxford. After they were married, Dr Currie went to Nuffield College, Oxford, to research his Doctor of Philosophy, which was published in 1968 as Methodism Divided. Industrial relations expert Hugh Clegg was at Nuffield at the time and arranged for Dr Currie to be appointed politics tutor at Wadham. He began his 45-year membership of the college in 1967, at the end of Maurice Bowra’s term as Warden. Dr Currie’s next major publication was Genius, an Ideology in Literature in 1974. In 1977, he published Churches and Churchgoers, written with Alan Gilbert and Lee Horsley. Two years later, Dr Currie was back in print with Industrial Politics. Throughout this period, he continued to teach and inspire undergraduates. As a tutor, he challenged students to analyse politics through other disciplines, including sociology and economics. In 2000, Dr Currie and his wife retired and continued their lifelong hobby of buying books. They installed rolling stacks in the garages of both their houses to accommodate their huge library. In 2010, Mrs Currie was diagnosed with a rare form of cancer, and Dr Currie cared for and supported her through two difficult years. In July this year, Mrs Currie went into Sobell House Hospice in Oxford and a week before she died Dr Currie was diagnosed with lymphoma. Following Mrs Currie’s death on September 1, Dr Currie’s condition worsened and he died on September 13. His funeral was at Wadham College on Monday, followed by burial at Woodland Burial Ground, Rotherfield Greys.

GERMAN lecturer Pamela Currie, Emeritus Fellow of Oxford University’s Lady Margaret Hall, has died aged 71. She was also Pringle Fellow and Tutor of the Hall. Pamela Ward was born in Huddersfield in 1941, the only child of Thomas Ward and Dorothy, née Booth. Mr Ward was a travelling salesman for Standard Fireworks, while his wife was a keen amateur gardener and craftswoman. After the war, the family moved to Rayners Lane in London. Pamela Ward passed her 11-plus to secure a place at North London Collegiate School, ending her time there as head girl. She went on to read Modern Languages at Lady Margaret Hall, where she earned a double first. Miss Ward was not religious, but her father came from a Methodist family and encouraged her to seek out other Methodists when she arrived in Oxford. One of the graduate students running Bible study groups at the Wesleyan Hall was Robert Currie. They married in September 1963. Although Mrs Currie read French and German, she focused on German, and spent a year working in a publishing house in Germany. After she graduated, she became fellow and tutor of German at Lady Margaret Hall. As a scholar, she focused on German writer Johann Wolfgang von Goethe. Her published works include Literature as Social Action and a host of other articles. In her final months, she completed the last one and a collection of articles will be published posthumously. Mrs Currie and her husband read and improved each other’s academic researches. They walked all over England, especially in Oxfordshire and Somerset, where they spent a large part of every year for the last three decades. In retirement, the couple found time to rekindle old friendships. Mrs Currie died on September 1 and her funeral took place on September 14 at Rotherfield Greys Woodland Burial Ground. The couple are survived by their children and two grandchildren, Arianna and Alessandro.