Mark Edgerley: Tributes flood in after death man dubbed 'Mr Romsey'

Mark Edgerley, commonly referred to as 'Mr Romsey', died on Thursday, February 1. 

Mr Edgerley, 71, was involved in a huge number of local groups. He was the town centre manager for a number of years, as well as the chairman of the Romsey Forum. He was also the chief executive of Marwell Zoo. 

Cllr Mark Cooper said: “I first knew Mark Edgerley well over 20 years ago when he was Director of Marwell Zoo. One of my sons, Peter, became a member of Marwell's Oryx Club which gave young people open access to the zoo. At the time the zoo was concerned about cash flow and the cost of feeding the large stock of animals and, at the tender age of seven, my son insisted on emptying his money box and delivering the cash to Mark personally at his Romsey home. To my son's great satisfaction, Mark took the money-box donation seriously.

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“He was truly a man who gave back to his community far more than he took. He is an example to us all.”

Liz Wagner, chairman of 2021 and 2023 Romsey Festivals, said: “It was a total pleasure to work with Mark for the last 10 years on the Romsey Festival committee. Mark was passionate about Romsey and supporting events to help make Romsey the thriving market town we know today. Mark was a brilliant people person and certainly the Romsey Festival benefitted from his skills and ability to connect with the community. Mark was generous with his time and was a great vice-chairman for the 2021 and 2023 Romsey Festivals; such was his passion to support, he managed to visit most events during the very full festival fortnights. He will be sadly missed.”

Romsey deputy mayor John Parker said: “It came as a great shock to me to hear of the sudden death of my colleague Mark Edgerley. 

“Mark was involved in many activities in Romsey including the initial days of the Test Valley Community Services (now Unity), Romsey Festival, Romsey Future, Romsey Forum, King John’s House, Romsey and District Society but it is as his years as town centre manager that most people will remember him. A larger-than-life character, he was always to be seen in the town centre in his hi-vis jacket talking to everyone. No wonder people described him as Mr Romsey. But, for those who followed his posts on Facebook, it was evident that Mark was at heart a great family man. My thoughts go out to his wife, children, and grandchildren. Mark, I, too, will miss you.”

A statement from Romsey Town Council said: “Mark retired as town centre manager in 2020. On behalf of Romsey Town Council and staff, chief officer - Judith Giles said his work, passion and dedication to Romsey is irreplaceable. Romsey has lost one of the best.”

In a tribute on Facebook, Cllr Nick Adams-King said: “Mark loved Romsey, his commitment to the town was total and his involvement in so many local organisations and events ensured they thrived. He was involved from the early days of Romsey Future, was a stalwart of the Romsey Festival committee and was integral to the success of Romsey Beggars Fair. 

“More than this, Mark was a good friend. He was a kind, decent, principled man. His humour shone through and his mischievous grin as he threw a comment into a conversation to make the debate a little more sparky was legend.

“We had different politics, but that never mattered. We worked alongside one another for many years, for the good of the town and those around us, and Mark's involvement always made the outcome better.

“My thoughts and sincerest condolences are with his family and very many friends.”