Nimrod Ping

Nimrod Ping

Nimrod Ping (birth name Adrian Charles Barden Ping;[1] 19 September 1947[2] - 3 July 2006) was a British architect and politician. After attending the Royal Grammar School, High Wycombe from 1964-66[3] he studied architecture at Cardiff University. He served as a councillor at the former Brighton Borough Council (now Brighton and Hove) for eight years from 1991 to 1999, until he became physically incapacitated through liver failure caused by Hepatitis C. He was one of the first openly gay councillors in Britain.[4] Originally a Labour Party supporter, he joined the Green Party a few months before his death.

Thanks to his unusual name, he achieved national fame after the BBC Radio 2 presenter Terry Wogan used his name as scale against which to compare other interesting names.

He was responsible for organising Brighton's "Gay Pride" for a number of years.

Ping was known locally as the face of southern England's Hepatitis C Campaign and was the face of Brighton and Hove's leading shopping centre for a while during which the shopping centre joined his appeal in return for having a leading politician's support.

Nimrod died of hepatitis-related liver failure in 2006.[5]

References

  1. ^ England & Wales, Birth Index 1947
  2. ^ Royal Grammar School High Wycombe: School List for Autumn Term 1964 - age at death was definitely not 46 as given in newspaper references
  3. ^ Royal Grammar School High Wycombe: School List for Autumn Term 1965
  4. ^ Cohen, Benjamin (5 July 2006), "Gay campaigner Nimrod Ping dies aged 46", PinkNews.com, http://www.pinknews.co.uk/news/articles/2005-1891.html, retrieved 2008-10-11 
  5. ^ "Tributes to former councillor", The Argus, 5 July 2006, http://archive.theargus.co.uk/2006/7/5/212379.html, retrieved 2008-10-11 


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