Tributes flood in for ‘Mr Tean’
Moorlands shop owner was immortalised in chant
TRIBUTES have been paid to a local legend immortalised in the famous Stoke City promotion battle cry.
Pat Mcgarry, known locally as Mr Tean, became part of Potteries folklore after radio phone-in caller Pottermouth gave his rousing Stoke City battle cry featuring the words ‘Do it for Pat Mcgarry and his paper shop.’
Born in Tean in February 1931, Pat’s biggest excursion from his home village was during his national service with the Royal Signals, for which he was stationed in Egypt during the Suez Crisis.
But Pat’s heart was always at his home in Tean, where he became widely respected as a greengrocer, cricket umpire, and councillor.
He met Margaret Plant when she came into his shop to buy bananas. The pair were wed in 1961. The couple went on to have three children – Elizabeth, Catherine and Ian.
Catherine said: “It would be probably easier to say what he wasn’t involved in than to list what he was involved in as he always seemed to be the centre of village life in Tean.
“Dad was 90 this February, and because of covid we weren’t able to have a party, so my brother Ian created a Facebook page for people to send him birthday wishes and share anecdotes.
“We were blown away by how many people got in touch from all over the world sharing memories of his shop, life in the village and how many people he had helped in various ways that we never knew about.”
Elizabeth added: “My dad’s just
been such a big figure, he’s going to leave a huge hole.
“He was very fair, above everything. He wanted to be fair to everybody and give everyone a chance.”
One surprising story involved Pat featuring in Pottermouth’s ‘battle-cry’ written for former manager Tony Pulis to read to Stoke City to inspire them to push into the Premier League, and it read: “Do it for Trentham Gardens, do it for Mow Cop, do it for Pat Mcgarry in his paper shop.”
Elizabeth said: “When Stoke were going for promotion to the Premier League there was this anonymous person called Pottermouth that did the battle cry.
“We didn’t know who it was until about two years ago.
“It was a bloke whose dad was a milkman in the shop, and he used to hear my dad talk football with his dad, so he mentioned him.”
Pat was also widely respected in sports – coaching a youth cricket team called ‘The Nomads’ as they didn’t have a home ground, and umpiring later in life.
He was also heavily involved in both the parish council and district council.
Councillor Bryan Stubbs paid tribute to Pat on behalf of Checkley Parish Council, of which Pat was a member.
He said: “A family man, who along with his family ran a number of grocery stores in the village. He was also a big sportsman, playing cricket for Team and Chetley, and in his later years umpiring the game he loved.
“Well-liked as a parish councillor and district councillor, and a very big name in the Tean Royal British Legion, always up front on the legion remembrance days down in the village. He was a very good person you could go to for some good advice as a parish councillor and a district councillor. A really good guy, and he’ll be sadly missed Catherine added: “He was very proud to come from Tean.
“To us, he’ll forever be our dad and we will miss his singing, his distinctive laugh and his sense of humour..”