As a fellow commentator, I always had the greatest respect for John. It was huge fun working with him - although sometimes, shall we say, challenging.....
If you hadn't met him, you might not know that he had only one hand, after an accident some years ago I think. But what might have been seen as a disability by some people, was often used to good effect by John.
When he was driving his ancient and beloved Landrover, and some klutz on the road irritated him, he could make some extremely graphic gestures with his stump. And if he were kept waiting in a restaurant, he could occasionally be seen gnawing on it with that kind of villainous leer that only someone with the deepest twinkle could get away with.
We shall miss him, a lot. He was a one-off.
airsound