Anthony

Anthony Charles Piercey
5 November 1929 - 29 November 2020
Tony was born in Hammersmith, the only son of Charles and Eileen (Catliff) Piercey. He spent his early years growing up in Hounslow, West London attending Isleworth Grammar School, leaving at eighteen to work and attend night school where he studied engineering and draughtsmanship. At the beginning of World War II, he was brie?y evacuated to Wiltshire where his grandfather owned an idyllic cottage in the village of Wilton. He returned home when he had to start secondary school. During this time his school and locality suffered from German bombing. These early experiences created a lifelong fascination with anything war related. He was a keen scout, a member of the 4th Heston Scout Group, Where he made many life long friends; in particular Frank Newman and Alan Badby. Tony would tell countless tales of his scouting days and in particular his love of self suf?ciency, camping and bushcraft. He went on to become a design engineer for radar and aircraft at Godfrey Davis.
During this time, he was called up to do the required National Service for the Airforce. It was two reluctant years out of Tony°s life that he could not get back. Upon his return, he went back Godfrey Davis. In 1953, Tony married Dorothy Lovibond, whom he had met at is beloved Scottish dancing class. He adored Scottish dancing and the sound of the Scottish bagpipes.
Two years after their marriage, Roger James, their only son, was born, 15 February 1955. He then became a designer for Avery, a Venetian blind company. When they refused to entertain an idea he had for a special product, he was so sure it was a great idea that he quit and set up his own company launching his own product,The Sunshield. Technical Blinds Ltd. was thus born in 1972 with £5O0 in his pocket and another £500 lent by his next door neighbour, (a recent immigrant from Uganda), along with a dust pan and brush. Tony worked hard to make Technical Blinds Ltd the success it was despite many setbacks, particularly in the early days when the British economy was beset by strikes and monetary devaluation. During the three day week imposed by the government, Tony had all the windows blacked out so that he and his workers could carry on and the company could survive. Eventually, his company Was the world leader in natural light control for museums and art galleries, as Well as palaces, greenhouses and the like. They maintained contracts all over the globe using adjustable louvres, controlled by motors and photo electric cells. After Working With architects including Richard Rogers and Norman Foster, Tony received a British Design Award in 1983 for his successful innovative light control design. Tony's love for Italy began in the 1960"s. He would pile his family into an old Austin Cambridge along with friends, Laurie and ]oyce, and take three days to negotiate, ?rst the ferry crossing, and then the French roads, to arrive at the newly discovered Mediterranean resorts. When he found Italy, he found his spiritual home on the Riviera del Conero. He returned every year, eventually purchasing and renovating a small derelict house in Via Molini, Sirolo. At this point, his partner was Joyce and together with the help of their neighbour and builder Moreno, they turned the house into two beautiful flats one for Tony and ]oyce and one for their many visitors. In 1991, Tony sold Technical Blinds and retired. He and Ioyce travelled the World and spent ever more time in Italy. After a car accident in Germany at the age of seventy, Joyce suffered a heart condition and early Alzheimers which slowly progressed. Around this time, they moved their English residence from Ramsbury, Wiltshire to Overton, Hampshire. However, they spent more time in Italy Where they felt more at home. Joyce died in February 2014. Tony was hit hard by this loss. Slowly he came to terms with his new life and bounced back, making new friends and getting closer to his grand children Luca, Arendal and Ethan Who Would visit. Arendall Will ever be applauded for accompanying Tony to Tony suffered a number ofhealth issues in later years but appeared to be invincible, bouncing back from a number of serious operations. "Don Antonio" as he was affectionately called, stayed sharp of mind with a zest for life to the end. He recently bought a classic 1966 FIAT 500 With his friend Ryan. He only "drove" it once, crashing into a gate post thankfully with no damage. Tony made many great friendshíps throughout his life, too many to mention. In the last years he would make weekly visits with friends to his favourite restaurants: La Taverna in the centre, Lido Azzurro on the beach, Rosso Conero on the mountain and Le Vergare in the countryside where last year he celebrated his 90th birthday with 30 English and Italian friends. Tony left a big hole in the hearts of those who loved him and he will be sorely missed. He is survíved by his son, Roger James Piercey, his daughter-in-law, ]o Piercey and his three grandchildren, Luca, Arendall and Ethan.