Freddie Wells was born on 28 March 1932 in Primrose Hill, London, where he grew up. Fred was bombed out by the Luftwaffe and evacuated to St.Albans during the Second World War. Having left school at the age of 14, his first job was as an office boy at Elstree film studios (the third generation of his family to do so), where he rubbed shoulders with such famous names as David Niven, Jack Hawkins, Margaret Leighton and Leslie Howard. Freddie worked for 38 years at Vauxhall Motors in Luton, starting out in the Cost office and then moving to the role of Pensions Payment Supervisor. Over these years he helped a great many people with their plans for a happy retirement. He retired from Vauxhall himself in 1990. Having started playing drums at an early age, taking lessons from the famous Eric Delaney, a love of music and drumming was central to Freddie’s life. A fine technical drummer in all musical styles, he would practice for several hours each day right up to his last years. This passion and dedication to music saw him play for the Mid-Herts Big Band for 38 years, the Vauxhall Concert Band and many productions for St Andrews players. It was his 50-year contribution to the trio run by his friend and pianist Jimmy Harrison which reached the biggest audience, playing for public and private functions to multitudes of appreciative dancers and audiences. Over the years, Fred accompanied a number of well known performers, including Dusty Springfield, Joe Dolce and The Mudlarks. He also spent several years as the drummer in the band at Luton’s Majestic ballroom. It was not just as a performer, but as a teacher that Fred will be remembered by many, many drummers and percussionists, including such luminaries as Gilson Lavis, long-standing drummer for Jools Holland. For over 60 years Fred passed on his knowledge and skills. Originally he taught the drums privately, but following his retirement from Vauxhall, he started teaching at local schools. These included Northfields, Manshead and Queensbury High Schools in Dunstable, Stopsley High School in Luton and Walton High School in Milton Keynes. He was still teaching from the conservatory at his home in Luton up until weeks before his death. A blind date at the Gaumont Cinema in Luton in 1957 led to a long and happy marriage to his lovely wife Ann, yielding three wonderful children, Karen, Neil and Lisa. Family was also central to Freddie’s life, and he was intensely proud of his children and seven grandchildren. Anyone who dealt with Freddie in any capacity would class him as a true gentleman, who always saw the best in everyone. A kind and gentle man, his generosity of spirit touched the lives of all those who knew him. Possessing a great sense of humour - often necessary for a life-long supporter of Queens Park Rangers - his dedication to his family was always unfailing. A ‘legend’ to his pupils, and an inspiration to all who played alongside him, his unfailing commitment to passing on his passion for drumming has enriched the lives of so many young musicians. So many people will miss Freddie for so many reasons. When teased, he often said "I’m a lovely man!" The rest of us knew he was so much more than that…