Christopher Michael Wragg

When we stepped from the packed chapel to the flower display after Chris Wragg’s funeral, the crematorium rang to the sound of laughter, as we swopped anecdotes about this iconic Yorkshireman.

He had spent half his career in A&E—first in Merseyside, then in Scunthorpe—and undoubtedly the A&E stories were the best: Singing “The Laughing Policeman” over the tannoy during the Toxteth riots; poling himself down a corridor on a trolley, singing “Just One Cornetto”; and taking advantage of an empty waiting room (it was a long time ago), to sit and pretend to be a patient, then storm out, inviting the new arrivals to follow. Utterly unacceptable behaviour, of course, even by those days’ …