Donal William Morphy (12 December 1900 – 25 May 1975) was a British electrical engineer from Kent who formed Morphy Richards in July 1936 with engineer Charles Richards.
Family
His father worked for a shipping company. His parents were Arthur Morphy (7 October 1876 - March 1956) and Gwendolyn Pilcher (26 April 1877 - 11 March 1966). Arthur's sister, Elenora Ruth Morphy (25 April 1879 - 4 August 1973) married Gwendolyn's brother Victor George Pilcher (28 April 1870 - 12 September 1928), on 29 December 1898.
His parents married at the English Church, in Athens in Greece, on March 19 1900.[1]
Early life
He was born in Patras in Greece.
He attended the independent Bedford School.[2] From 1917 to 1920 he studied electrical engineering at the City and Guilds College (now part of Imperial College London).
At university, he rowed competitively.[3] From 1920 his father, Arthur, financially donated a rowing cup to the university, to be competed on the River Thames, the Morphy Cup. The annual college sports day was called Morphy Day.[4]
Career
Morphy Richards
He formed Morphy Richards[5] with Charles Richards on 8 July 1936. Charles Richards died aged 64 on Sunday 15 November 1964.
Personal life
In the 1920s he lived in East Sheen. He married Margaret Clare Sherring (born 12 May 1900) on 3 August 1923 at Christ Church, East Sheen, in Surrey, by Rev E.H. Tupper.[6] His wife was the eldest daughter of Charles Atmore Sherring, of Sheen Mount, in East Sheen.[7] From the 1950s he lived at Peasons Lodge on Holbrook Lane in Chislehurst,[8] and by the 1960s he lived at 'Upper Mead' in Byworth in West Sussex.[9]
His wife's mother, Florence, died, suddenly, on July 27 1939, aged 71; she originated from Banham, Norfolk, where she is buried.[10] His wife's father died on October 9 1940, aged 72; he attended Westminster School and Trinity College, Cambridge.[11]
See also
- Peter Hobbs (engineer), former Morphy Richards employee, who formed Russell Hobbs in 1952
External links
References
- Times Thursday March 19 1925, page 1^
- Times Saturday June 3 1939, page 15^
- Times Monday July 26 1920, page 7^
- Imperial College 1928^