Obituary of Anthony Ascroft Blundell

Tony Blundell 1937-2025

In just over 88 years of life few have lived more than Tony Blundell.  On July 24th, 2025, Tony’s amazing time on this earth came to a peaceful end.  Born in Salford, Manchester, England on June 26th, 1937, to George and May, he was the second child behind his sister Barbara and was followed by a younger sister Pam.  With the onset of WW2 he was sent away from the bombing of Manchester to live with his grandparents in Cleveleys, just north of Blackpool.  In his youth he worked one year in the post office before he joined the Royal Navy at the ripe age of sixteen in 1953.  For eleven years Tony traveled the world as a radio operator on ships and on postings.  The favourite posting was clearly Hong Kong as he told countless stories of his time there over and over and over…

After buying his way out of the Royal Navy in 1964 he wound up in Australia.  His route to Australia was mostly by bus from London to  Hong Kong.  Tony often spoke of this journey as one of the highlights of his life. Now it was time to put his Radio Operator skills to good use.  He spent three years with ANARE (Australian National Antarctic Research Expeditions), two on Mainland Antarctica and one year on the subantarctic Macquarie Island.  During his time at Mawson station in 1968 he was part of an expedition into the Larsemann Hills.  For his work there both a Peak and Lake are named after him.  Blundell Peak will now even show up on Google Maps.

After these years, he began working as a prospector in the Australian outback where he met Valda, and moving to Canada with Valda was Tony’s next big adventure.   Again, employing his skills as a Radio Operator he spent five seasons in the Arctic on oil rigs, ships and in Tuktoyaktuk, NWT.  Once he settled in Ottawa, he spent twenty years doing what he did best, talking to people, as a psychiatric nurse at the Queensway Carleton Hospital. After a battle with prostate cancer, Tony continued to work into his 80s as a Commissionaire (ex-military security guard) at government buildings all over Ottawa.  

Tony’s joy in life came from those around him.  Not only family by blood but chosen family.  He will be missed by his son Paz, his wife Mia and his granddaughter Madeleine.  He was predeceased by his other son Randall in 2024.  Lifelong friend Bjorn was always at the other end of the phone, and Facetime calls with brother-in-law Keith were always full of joyous laughter.  Longtime friend Greg was always in his thoughts, as were Drew and Soai.  And of course, he always dreamed of his time in Australia with Bob and Shirley and their daughters Penny, Cathy and Linda. He kept in touch with friends all over the world with annual unique Christmas cards depicting his fun drawings and memories from his life, and he loved reconnecting with people from his past.

Tony’s ashes will be spread in a river that will eventually flow into the Atlantic and spread to all the places he visited in his travels around the world.  To have a chat with him, go down to the water, I am sure he will be listening. 

In lieu of a funeral, a celebration of Tony’s amazing life will be held at a later date.  If you are so inclined, a donation can be made to any charity supporting Indigenous peoples.  

Blundell Peak Click Link HERE

Google View of Blundell Peak Click Link HERE