Mary Grace McMurdie

Born in Edgware on 25th November 1934, Mum grew up in North London, although she was evacuated to Scotland with her mother for a short time at the end of WW2. Her father William Charles Marshall served as a Desert Rat in the army but was killed by a landmine two days after the war ended. 


At 21 Mum met and then married our Dad, Ron McMurdie.
As newly weds Mum and Dad lived in Kingsbury before moving out of London to Hertfordshire. During 54 years of marriage and several house moves, each improved and extended by Dad under Mum’s watchful eye, they finally retired to Berkhamsted in 2005


In addition to keeping us girls in line, Mum had two passions: dogs and travel. As a child she had owned an Alsatian and she always had dogs at home, Yorkshire and West Highland terriers, a chihuahua called Buddy and several other strays she found over the years. I remember quite clearly when Mum bought my first dog off of a tramp in the East End of London. She’d actually told him she didn’t have any money on her and the only cash she had was our dinner money; turned out that was enough and Scruffy came home with us! Honey kept Mum company right up to the end.


Mum loved to travel, and as kids my sisters, Sam, Max and I, were lucky enough to enjoy many holidays travelling around Europe. 


Once Mum and Dad trusted us enough to look after the dogs they holidayed more often: sometimes with friends and then on the cruise ships, something mum bravely continued to do as a solo traveller after Dad passed away in 2011. 


At home Mum was not only devoted to her dogs, she also enjoyed entertaining and regularly hosted dinner parties or barbecues for  friends and neighbours. 


She loved dancing and often encouraged reluctant dancers onto the dance floor; I remember her once dragging a poor one legged man up to dance, and also her bopping with a young lad who turned out to be a runner up body popping dancer from Britain’s Got Talent. 


Even when she wasn’t quite so agile she still enjoyed a night out and I  recall her driving her mobility scooter home laughing so much she careered off the lane at full speed and down the canal side into a ditch. We were all laughing so much we struggled to pull her out.


Dementia and other medical challenges led to Mum being admitted to a&e several times over the past few years and each time she defied the odds and came back home. Mum was not one to give in and she would still be chatting up the young doctors as they were discharging her, one described her as a ‘cheerful, feisty lady’.


Our Mum loved life, she loved singing, dancing and her dogs, and although she was troubled by failing health over the last 12 years she lived with me, she did have lots of fun.


Mary was loved by her family, her carers and friends and she will be deeply missed and fondly remembered by us all. x