Peter, Kevin and Gaia reminisce and share the special memories they have of Derek and Ian

Derek Deadman and Ian Bradley can be described as the "old lags" of the Department of Economics at the University of Leicester. They are the collective memory of the Department. Their memories go so far back that no one living in or around Leicester could possibly challenge their version of past events in this illustrious community of scholars. Their combined memories span approximately 75 years. Dementia has not yet completely set in (!) and they can be relied upon to remember the fine details of regulations which were first implemented in the early 1970's. Indeed such is progress that many of these regulations, or slight variations of them, are still in force today. Ian and Derek can also be relied upon to remember the various famous economists that have passed through the Department either as members of staff or as students who have benefited from their tuition. However, they have seen, and have been part of, enormous change during their respective 38 and 40 years in the department too. Gone are the days of small class sizes and tutorial groups of just 2 or 3 students, when you could conduct a tutorial group in your own room. Gone are the days of a scholarly one hour morning coffee break, followed by a scholarly one and a half hour lunch and then a scholarly one hour afternoon tea break in the senior common room before going home at 4pm! These were the days of high powered intellectual debate conducted leisurely and in a civilised manner amongst gentlemen (yes, I do mean gentlemen!).

With Ian and Derek's departure we remind ourselves of the fundamental values upon which this department has been built. The angry young men might have grown into grumpy old men. But they can take pride that they helped lay the foundations of something that this Department has become well known for since it was established: excellent teaching and attention and time given to students. Ian and Derek are outstanding teachers and they care about their students. They understand the problems that students face and come up with excellent teaching solutions. The fact that Derek has not updated his statistics notes since 1972 does not really matter. The notes were good then and remain good today! After all, has statistics really changed that much in 36 years?

Joking apart, colleagues could do a lot worse than have Ian and Derek as role models. The care and attention that they give their students; the attention to detail in curriculum design; the thought that they put into their lectures and their attention to maintaining high academic standards are laudable and should be emulated. Both Ian and Derek became assessors during the QAA Subject Reviews that took place ten years or so ago providing a national acknowledgment of their enormous expertise in the delivery of university economics teaching. They also coordinated the preparations and conduct of the QAA's audit of the department in 2001 for which we not only obtained the maximum 24/24 but also a long list of highlighted points of commendation in the QAA's report. Ian also ran the department both as Acting HoD and as HoD in the late nineties, making a number of important strategic decisions which contributed to the development of the department into the success it is today. At the same time, Derek was at the heart of all teaching activities, running Learning and Teaching, Admissions and Exams in an exemplary way. And last but not least, with gentle modesty, they have carried out their research which has contributed significantly to shaping the research agenda of the Department today. Up to the time of his retirement Ian has been publishing in top international journals while Derek's long standing contribution to the economics of crime will remain with the Department forever. The fact that they can no longer run as fast as they could when they were playing cricket in the Gilmore League should not be held against them.

Ian and Derek, we thank you for everything that you have done for your Department over the many, many years that you have been in Leicester. You have made an important difference to the many students that you have taught, and to the colleagues who have had the joy to meet you. We thank you and salute you. Whilst we say farewell, it is not goodbye and we expect to see you cluttering up the place on frequent occasions in the future.