Allen W. M. "Doc" Coombs

I have just received, to my great regret, a notice about the death of Allen W. M. "Doc" Coombs, who was one of the principal designers of the Mark 2 (or Production Version) of the Bletchley Park Colossus code-breaking machines, and who took over the leadership of the project when Tommy Flowers moved on to other projects. (See A.W.M. Coombs: "The Making of Colossus," Annals of the History of Computing, vol. 5, no. 3, pp.253-259, 1983.) The notice reads as follows:

       We write with great sadness to let you know that
           Allen Coombs died peacefully at home on
         January 30th 1995 in the midst of his family.

        FUNERAL at St Bartholomews Church, Yealmpton,
     Plymouth, Devon, on Monday, February 6th at 1.30pm.

              Family Flowers only please.

   Donations, if desired, for The Red Cross may be sent to:
            Allan James - Funeral Directors,
           Sandaway, Brixton, Plymouth, Devon

     Vera Coombs, Blythknoll, Yelambury Hill, Yealmpton,
               Telephone 01752 880717

Doc Coombs, like all his colleagues, for many years kept the story of their great achievement completely secret, until the secrecy restrictions were partly lifted. He was a splendid character as well as a brilliant engineer, whose lectures on the Colossus, though carefully staying within the bounds of what could be revealed, were a joy to listen to.

I count it a great privilege to have been allowed to play a role in publicly documenting what he and his colleages achieved, and to have been able to meet with Doc and his wife Vera on a number of occasions. I hope that someone who was more closely involved with him, and who knows of his entire career, will write a suitable obituary.

Brian Randell Dept. of Computing Science, University of Newcastle, Newcastle upon Tyne, NE1 7RU, UK EMAIL = Brian.Randell@newcastle.ac.uk PHONE = +44 91 222 7923 FAX = +44 91 222 8232

Last updated 95/02/05