TRIBUTE has been paid to a 'charming' Herefordshire farmer and former rally driver.

David John Cecil Davenport, a forester, farmer, and owner of the Foxley Estate in Mansel Lacy has died aged 88.

Daughter Sara Davenport said the Old Etonian, who also attended the Sandhurst Royal Military Academy and Cirencester Royal Agricultural College, was a charming man, interested in everything and everyone he encountered.

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A rally driver in his early life, he served in the Grenadier Guards for 15 years before returning to Herefordshire on the death of his father in 1967.

With an extensive circle of friends, both in the UK and abroad, he was a generous host.

Hereford Times: David Davenport at 58. Picture: Sara DavenportDavid Davenport at 58. Picture: Sara Davenport

Mr Davenport loved entertaining and his house was frequently full of guests and visitors from all corners of the globe. Forestry and the countryside were his main passions, and he travelled widely learning how best to manage the fields and woodlands of the Foxley Estate that he owned and cared for for more than 50 years.

He was always accompanied by a series of much loved Labradors and rarely went anywhere without them trotting happily at his heels.

Mr Davenport was deeply involved with the local Herefordshire community, serving on his local parish and as a member of both Weobley and Leominster District Councils for many years as well as as Chairman of the Joint Development Committee for North Herefordshire and South Shropshire.

He was Chairman of CoSIRA Hereford and Worcester Committee, President of the Herefordshire Branch of the CLA and Chairman of the Herefordshire Branch of the CPRE. In 1974 he was appointed Deputy Lieutenant for the County of Hereford and Worcester for 1989/90, and was awarded a CBE in 1989.

Alongside his other commitments, in 1995 David became the UK distributor of the Japanese Hand Tool company Silky Saws. He had spotted a gap in the forestry tools market, and today his Silky Fox business is renowned for selling the best pruning saws and hand tools currently available in the UK.

David leaves behind his much loved wife, Lindy, and three children, Sara, Alicia and James, as well as six grandchildren, Sophie, Alexia, Isabel, Edward, Hugo and Johnny. He is much missed.

A memorial service will be held at Hereford Cathedral on Thursday, October 13.