Blair died suddenly from Acute Myeloid Leukaemia in the early hours of Sunday 17 April. He was taken ill on the previous Thursday and rushed to Royal Prince Alfred Hospital. I was overseas with my partner John and flew back immediately. By the time I arrived on the Saturday morning he was medically sedated on a ventilator in intensive care. Blair’s father, Nigel, had been with him from the Thursday and was magnificent, as was the hospital. We spent a precious 17½ hours at his bedside. There were 30 people in the waiting room, another 30 outside and even more old school friends at the pub! Blair would be pleased.
He was the most positive person I had ever met, and it was a joy and a privilege to have been his mother.
Blair’s friends and family flew in from around the globe. A bunch of his Charles Sturt University friends set up in our offices at the Sydney Studio Kitchen and spent a fortnight producing audio visual tributes. Ultimately Blair was farewelled in a heartfelt service in the chapel of his old school, Barker College on Saturday 30 April with an audience of 800 packed inside and also standing outside in the pouring rain. Several of us near and dear spoke at the service and Blair’s sister Lucy who flew in from London, and a close friend sang beautifully. A celebration followed at Sydney Theatre which culminated in theatre-style tributes by many of his friends. They sang, read poetry and spoke of their love for Blair. The finale was this appropriately upbeat, for Blair was a party man, video compilation put together by his friends from Charles Sturt University.
Tribute from Lyndey Milan on Vimeo.
