Anyone who was anyone in 1950s and '60s Derby knew Reg Dudley, an ever-present member of the press corps. But he was just as familiar to the ordinary folk whose lives he recorded on film until his life was cut short while in his professional prime.
The Derby Evening Telegraph's Pat Parkin looks back over a short, but memorable, career.

He was known to countless people as the man behind the camera which captured every important event that happened in Derby in the post-war years.

And had he ever had time to create one, his portfolio would have been huge - for he covered everything from royal visits and showbiz events to civic and social happenings and the weddings and christenings of ordinary folk as well as the aristocracy.

A proud Derbeian, it is sad that much of his professional work has disappeared but personal photographs of his family, saved by his two daughters - Wendy Davis and Sue Ollerenshaw - reveal the artistic eye of a self-taught but talented cameraman.

Photography was his hobby and he was always experimenting with cameras. His eye for a good picture was soon spotted by the Derby Evening Telegraph with whom he used to 'moonlight' until he joined the staff after losing 'the day job'.

He later worked for the old Derby Express newspaper but eventually decided to open his own business.

He used the front room of the family home in Regent Street as an office and transformed a bedroom into his darkroom.

Daughter Wendy said: "I don't think he found it easy working for a boss.

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