Thanks for taking the time to visit my JustGiving page.

I am attempting the Fylde Coast Blackpool Marathon on 26 April 2015 in memory of my husband Mike and to raise money for Macmillan.

On 18 October 2014 I lost my husband after a long and courageous battle against cancer.

Macmillan were amazing, providing invaluable help and support. Mikes nurse Margaret helped us through a very difficult time with emotional, medical and financial matters. Mike placed a great deal of trust in her and her advice.

Obituary of Michael David Entwistle, by John Entwistle

Mike went to school at St Margaret’s primary and St Philip Howard secondary schools. He was always a mature child; even his Action Man had a beard. He showed early signs of wanting to progress in his chosen career when, as an alter boy, he swiftly rose to the prominent position of ‘bell ringer’. Promotion quickly went to his head, and displaying his leadership skills, he briefly delegated this responsibility to one of his young prodigies.  However, his unpredictability and poor sense of timing provided an early lesson to Mike in that if you want a job doing well, do it yourself.

At school, he was a heartthrob at the cutting edge of fashion, with Dr Martin boots and tight black jeans with more silver zips than are strictly necessary. In preparation for one school trip, he wanted to impress his mates by dying his dark hair to achieve a blond, naturally sun kissed look. Hours went by, reading the instructions and wandering impatiently around the house in a shower cap as the home colouring kit worked its magic. But even by 1980’s standards, the resulting bright yellow bouffant was a complete disaster. It is no coincidence that there is a gap in the family photographs of Mike during this period as Mike avoided capturing the evidence of this youthful mistake. However, you cannot avoid the dreaded school class photograph – so somewhere out there, in the loft of about 30 middle aged people from Glossop, is a single picture of Mike looking like an angry, blond Simon Le Bon amongst his classmates.

Mike grew up and went to study at the prestigious seat of learning that was Huddersfield Polytechnic. In his first week of term, he knew where all of the pubs were before he knew where the lecture theatres were. A lot of growing up was done during his first, harsh, Yorkshire winter away from home. His landlord looked like ventriloquist Roger De Courcey (without Nookie the bear) and his digs were located above his fish and chip shop. Here, one inch of ice formed on the inside of the bedroom windows. Mike went to bed fully clothed and wearing a bobble hat, trying desperately not to be the first person up in the morning, as that person got the job of breaking the ice in the toilet.

For 12 long months, even the gallons of brut aftershave Mike wore could not mask the permanent odour of chip fat that followed him around. However, it is out of this adversity, that Mike and his housemates became life long friends.

Mike’s first real job upon leaving Huddersfield was counting bricks, although his CV says he was a Quantity Surveyor. He has always loved cars, from the Belle-Vue custom-car motor shows visited as a teenager, to the grand prix and touring cars watched as an adult. So when he bought his first car, a polar white Ford Fiesta, he made sure that it was well looked after. When building a prison down in Bromsgrove, the temperature both day and night never rose above freezing. To care for his beloved car, throughout the week he wrapped the engine in a thick horse blanket to prevent the fluids from freezing, before coming home at the weekends. Genius. Give him his due, the car started first time, every time. It even started first time on the occasion he forgot to remove the blanket, and promptly travelled 110 miles up the M6, luckily causing no harm to him or car.

As a grown up, Mike has accomplished much and has been blessed with two beautiful daughters. Lauren shares Mike’s intelligence and dry, observational sense of humour and he was very proud of all she has accomplished. Mike took great pleasure and excitement in visiting Universities with Lauren, wanting her to be safe, happy and sharing the optimism of the next stages in her life.

Nieve shares Mike’s strong will and forthright nature, loud voice and an uncanny control over her eyebrows that will always come in handy. Mike loved to race Nieve up the stairs of an evening to read her story and put her to bed.  He would tell her on the days that he could not make it out of the house that he had stayed in to practising his assent so that he could beat her... Nieve would always win! Nieve has already made her mark on this family and has been a great source of strength.

Mike and Rebecca were married in December 2012 at an event full of friends and family. It was a superb day, full of laughter, full of love and full of great memories. Through the recent tough times of Mike’s illness, Rebecca’s strength and determination has been an inspiration. Mike was amazed at the tenacity that challenges were managed and gained comfort from the fact that when he needed it most, he had the love and support of his best friend. Together, they made the Swinton Park their own – simply enjoying good food and great company - and creating wonderful memories in the peace and tranquillity of the Yorkshire Dales.

Whenever you met Mike, you were always struck by his friendly, welcoming nature. Mike was astute, hardworking and a very proud man. He could also be a bit of a grump, but we can forgive him that, because he was an Entwistle after all. He had a wonderful habit of bringing an argument to a close by saying “Yeah, alright then” – whilst rolling his eyes and shaking his head at you! But recent comments to family sum him up, simply saying “Mike will always be remembered as one of the good guys”.

After Mike’s fight with illness, he is no longer in pain. It is those left behind that must deal with the pain and loss we feel. And while they are considerable, we can take comfort in knowing that he is where he is supposed to be. When thinking of Mike, remember to laugh and smile and have fun every day. Because we only get one life, and if we have learned anything from Mike, we learned to enjoy our lives all the time because we aren’t guaranteed tomorrow.

Please let us just be thankful for the special moments Mike has left us with and remember “Death ends a life, not a relationship”. With that, we hope that Mike will continue to live on within our hearts and minds.

We love you Mike, we miss you.