A huge number of CAMRA members, Great British Beer Festival volunteers especially, were shocked to learn of the passing of Bobbie Scully at the age of just 62. Born in Wallasey, Merseyside, Bobbie (she never used her given name of Barbara) read law at Keele University and was called to the Bar at Middle Temple. She took an unusual career path in joining the Council of Law Reporting which involved her making precise records of court proceedings that could set a legal precedent and which are essential to our legal system. Her skills led to her reporting cases right up to the Supreme Court.
In 2011, she succeeded Iain Sutherland as the editor of the Times Law Reports, becoming the first female to hold this prestigious post. Iain then became a fellow CAMRA volunteer. Bobbie was also the treasurer of the High Court Journalists’ Association, which promoted relations between the legal profession and the press. A senior colleague at the TLR described Bobbie as being ‘always cheerful of manner and as reliable as clockwork’
Bobbie first volunteered at the Great British Beer Festival in 1994 and completed the bar managers’ training course in 1996. She then became deputy to Dave Holland, who was to become her partner for life, and, after two years as a joint manager with Ben Parr-Ferris, she was given her own bar in 2007. Many colleagues posted tributes on CAMRA’s on-line forum (Discourse) and most of them followed two themes. The first was just how good a manager she was. Her relaxed, low-profile style hid a high level of professionalism. She would say that she just ‘swanned about’ and that she left her deputies to run the bar but she had trained them to the highest standard and encouraged them to have confidence in their abilities. That said, she always had her eye on everything that was going on.
The second theme was friendship. Many mentioned the loss of a friend with the driest of senses of humour and someone who always had the utmost respect for fellow volunteers. We send our condolences to Dave and to Bobbie’s family. The funeral, family only, was held on the Wirral. It is hoped to arrange a celebration of her life in London in the new year. The photo, kindly supplied by Steve Richardson, shows Bobbie at the GBBF in 2017.