Names on the buses

762 Ken Hobbs

Connections with Brighton and Hove : 1923 - 2024
Ken was born in Framfield, East Sussex. In 1942 he joined the Royal Army Service Corps as a driver. He was one of the first to go ashore on Sword Beach on D-Day, 6th of June 1944. Recalling that it was "very noisy" he particularly remembered meeting a Frenchman at the top of the beach, who said: "Hello Tommy. I knew you would come back one day". As a Frontline Driver his role was critically important, as he was delivering much of the equipment and ammunition needed by the troops. After he was discharged in 1947, despite receiving an eye injury, Ken became a bus driver with Southdown Motor Services for eight years. He went on to work in several different roles, always ones that suited his mechanical interests, until he retired. He married Georgina in 1951 and had three sons, Gary, Malcolm and Christopher. Ken's eyesight deteriorated in his later years, and he was cared for at Blind Veterans UK Brighton Centre in Ovingdean. While celebrating his 100th birthday at the home, he received news that a great-grandson, Sonny Baldwin, had been born exactly a century after Ken's own birth. In 2016 the French government awarded Ken the Chevalier de l'Ordre National de la Legion d'Honneur. Ken's own father had been awarded the French Croix de Guerre for his service in the First World War. Ken remarked that: "It's amazing that we both survived our wars and have both got French medals". He passed away at the age of 101.

762 ADL Enviro400 - carried name since December 2025.