Tributes to ‘witty’ dad-of-three who lost cancer battle aged 51
TRIBUTES have been paid to a much-loved barrister who passed away after an eight-month battle with cancer.
Mark Allen, formerly of Jubilee Road, Church, was diagnosed with lymphoma in March this year.
The father-of-three passed away peacefully at his home in Prestbury on Sunday, October 13, aged 51.
Mark grew up in Church and attended Sacred
Heart School and Mount Carmel RC High School before going to university and training to be a barrister.
His brother Rod said he was a ‘very clever chap’ and his cancer diagnosis was a ‘massive shock’.
He said: “He got diagnosed back in March with lymphoma so it was a relatively short period.
“It was a massive shock and very quick. He passed away peacefully at home and had all his children around him and his wife.
“He was very professional. He studied hard and played hard. He was doing degrees up until his mid-20s.
“He trained to be a barrister and then went into the construction law side of things. He was a commercial director for a large construction company in Manchester.”
Rod, 52, from Oswaldtwistle, said Mark regularly returned to Accrington to visit friends and family and will be ‘sadly missed’.
He said: “He was very much a character and loved coming back to
Accrington and meet up with friends and family. He was a regular part of the circle.
“He was very witty, very funny. He never lost contact with the people he grew up with.
“I’m sure there are people in Accrington and Hyndburn that will be shocked to find out he’s passed away.”
See page 12 for full obituary report.