Tom was born in 1912 and lived all of his life in Leicester. He was married to his wife Irene for 60 years and had 2 daughters and two granddaughters. He passed away in 2001 at the age of 88 from 'old age'.
Upon leaving school Tom was employed by Lipton's Grocery Store in the Market Place area of Leicester. Then he went to work for F.A. Palmer and Son, Pork Butchers in Belgrave Gate before going into the army in 1940, joining the Royal Signals as a Batman until the end of the war, he was on the beaches at Dunkirk.
After the war he was employed as a conductor for Leicester City Transport on the trams, then later as a bus driver.
In 1958 Tom first began standing in at civic occasions as part-time chauffeur, before being appointed to the full-time post of Lord Mayors Chauffeur in 1970, until his retirement at the age of 65 in 1977. He trained at Rolls Royce to drive the Lord Mayors cars and attended Buckingham Palace on many occasions over the years to chauffeur Lord Mayors and other dignitaries to the Queens Garden Parties.
Tom worked long and unsocial hours but he always said he 'loved every minute of it, so he didn't have much time for other interests and hobbies. After retirement he still worked on in a private part-time basis for many former Lord Mayors till he was well in his seventies, such was the regard the Lord Mayors had for him.
