Death of Burnley Market florist

Patrick Brady, of Croasdale Avenue, was a popular figure on Burnley Market Hall where he ran a florist stall for three decades.

The 75-year-old, known as “Paddy”, fought the corner of fellow stallholders in his role as secretary of the Market Tenants’ Association.

But the well-respected florist, who retired 11 years ago, died after suffering from pancreatic cancer.

Carol Parkinson paid tribute to her “best friend” Patrick, saying: “He was a person that, once met, you never forgot. He was a real character.

“He was very genuine – what you saw was what you got.

“They broke the mould when they made Paddy. The world will be a much quieter place without him.”

Patrick was called up by the Army for National Service during the 1950s and was sent off to serve in the jungles of Malaya.

He did a two-and-a-half year tour of duty with the Royal Army Ordinance Corps in the former British colony country in Asia.

But when he returned he did a host of jobs including a milkman, a long-distance lorry driver and even making televisions at Simonstone firm Mullard’s where he became the trade union official.

His love of horticulture saw him open a nursery near Farrington Moss to grow bedding plants and shrubs to sell to market stalls across Lancashire.

He bought a stall in Burnley Market Hall in the 1980s and built it up under the name Brady’s Florist which he ran until he retired in 2003.

Carol said: “It was really busy. We would make 500 or 600 holly wreathes at Christmas. We had a lot of regular customers.

“He prided on making everything himself. He did a lot of claret and blue shirts – even though he was a Blackburn Rovers fan.

“He was a very popular figure on the market. It is 11 years since he left and still people were asking him when he was coming back.”

He was a keen sportsman, playing football and cricket and even managed the Burnley Market Football Team. On retiring, Patrick took up golf and was a member at Nelson Golf Club. When he was not doing 18 holes, he would play snooker or be doing woodwork in his home-made workshop in the loft.