RETIRED parish priest and newspaper poet Canon John Wickham Dixon has died aged 80.

Canon Dixon, who died at his home in Sunnyside Avenue, Wilpshire, served the congregation of St Stephen, Little Harwood, Blackburn, for more than 30 years.

And in his retirement, he had amused Lancashire Evening Telegraph readers with his witty and perceptive verse in our Poet's Corner.

Long-standing friend and colleague Canon Geoffrey Williams said: "When he was vicar of Little Harwood, he knew everybody and everybody knew him whether they were church people or not.

"He was widely respected, admired and loved. When he celebrated his 25th anniversary as a priest in the parish, the church was packed to the doors.

"I always said he was the finest parish priest we had in the diocese."

Canon Dixon was educated at Queen Elizabeth's Grammar School, Blackburn, before gaining First Class Honours in Theology at St John's College, Durham. He began his career as a curate at St Andrew's, Ashton-on-Ribble, before taking lecturing posts at theological colleges in Birkenhead and Oxford.

He became priest of St Stephen's Church in 1954 where he married one of his own Sunday School teachers, Iris Walmsley.

When he decided to give up the parish in 1985, he said it would be a great wrench to leave the church where he was married and where his children, Judith and Andrew, were baptised and confirmed.

His poems and limericks were printed in the Lancashire Evening Telegraph throughout his retirement, and the last to be published was "Apologies" on October 21.

"I'm sorry if this scrap of verse

Appears a little late.

I'm out of circulation

'Til some uncertain date.

I haven't read the papers

Or seen the television,

Without these, who can hope

to know

What's ripe for mild derision?"

Canon Dixon's funeral will be held tomorrow at 11am at St Stephen's Church, Little Harwood.

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