DAVID EVANS 16 May 1961-29 March 2018
The sudden loss of Classic & Sports Car’s long-serving chief sub editor just two days after this issue’s cover shoot has been devastating. Evans left his role as editor of Test, an electronics testing magazine, to take a dream job on his favourite classic mag in 1999, and soon earned the nickname ‘Eeyore’ for his good-natured grumblings in the C&SC office.
Without fail the first into the office every day, and the last to leave each evening, David quickly made himself an invaluable part of the C&SC family. His memory for past stories was unparalleled, as was his respect and sensitivity towards their writers, and he quietly developed a deep and varied knowledge for the subject that stretched way beyond his own passions for French and German classics. That knowledge, and David’s attention to detail, have enriched the pages of the magazine, and will be impossible to replace.
His trials, tribulations and the seemingly endless mileages covered aboard his own beloved classic cars gave him a voice in the magazine that made him a favourite among readers, who followed his successes and failures with great interest, but it was David’s work with the various car clubs that will leave the biggest hole. The relationships he struck up with their committees, and his dedication to the annual C&SC Club Awards, created lifelong friendships, but also helped the magazine to reach out to new audiences and to earn respect from the old guard within the classic community.
Above all, David loved C&SC and, following the loss of his parents, he adopted the team as a surrogate family. As well as knowledgeable, he was also kind, thoughtful, generous, dedicated and unwaveringly loyal. These are just some of the phrases that have appeared in the vast number of tributes that have poured in from so many people whose lives David touched, usually through his small kindnesses. He would have been overwhelmed to know just how loved he was, and he will be sorely missed by everyone here at C&SC and beyond.
‘His memory for past stories was unparalleled, as was his respect and sensitivity towards their writers’