Roy A. Wiggins
Born in Felixstowe, Suffolk, England in 1929.
Went to various schools and left when he was 14 to join as an apprentice, 'The Gramophone Company' in Hayes Middlesex. Leaving when he was 16, to join the Royal Navy as a boy Telegraphist.
Serving on several ships and naval establishments he took up amateur boxing and won several trophies in various parts of the world. Just before his 30th. birthday, he left the Royal Navy with the rank of Chief Radio Electrician and became a Service Engineer with De Haviland Propellers Ltd. working on complex electro hydraulic radar equipment on Naval aircraft. Later on, he worked on electronic Helicopter control systems. This sometimes involved flying, at very short notice to different parts of the world to carry out investigations at crash sites. His parting words to his wife and family usually consisted of "Bye for now, expect me when you see me" as he rarely had any idea when he would return.
He has three sons, nine grand children and eight great grand children.- not related to any of the above departures he hastens to say. In 1977 he started his own Company specialising in Concrete repairs and associated maintenance problems, retiring as Managing Director, in 1994.
His bowling started just before his 60th. birthday in 1990 at Esso Research Bowls Club. In 1996 he became Club Captain. In 2002 the club changed its name to Milton Hill Bowls Club and opened on a new site near Didcot, Oxfordshire in 2003.
During 2002 he set up the Milton Hill Web site, - http://www.miltonhill.go-plus.net. Later on he started to play Short Mat Bowls but finding nothing about 'how to play it' available anywhere, subsequently wrote his own book which he published in 2007 and a second edition in 2009 which is now available on his other web site - http://www.shortmatbowling.uwclub.net.
He is now a qualified England Bowls Coach and runs coaching sessions every week at Milton Hill Bowls Club, near Oxford.
