Fred dibnah biography

The appearance brought him to the attention of BBC producer Don Haworth, who thought his bluff approach and eagerness to tackle any challenge would appeal to the British public – it turned out he was absolutely right, as Fred went on to present a host of programmes over the following 25 years.

Climbing to success

Of course, Fred’s story started long before he appeared on TV. Born of Frank and Betsy Dibnah in 1938, Fred was a normal working-class Boltonian – working as a joiner and spending his National Service in Germany after leaving school, though a brief stint at art college pointed to the more creative side that would come to the fore in his later years.

Fred’s love of chimneys was such that he would try everything to save them. In fact, even when there was no way of keeping them standing, his method of demolition showed his affection for the lofty vestiges, as he developed an intimate way of bringing them down.

He would climb the stacks, learning them from head to foot, before chipping away at the base to create a hole which he would fill with wooden props. When he was happy that the chimney would fall where he wanted it to, he would then light the props and run away to safety – a process far removed from the one used by explosives experts.

'Married to his engines'

Indeed, it was the filming of his felling process, in Fred’s first documentary appearance ('Fred Dibnah: Steeplejack' in 1979), which got him noticed nationally, as the programme won two awards for the producer, Don Haworth. The fact that he found fame for felling the chimneys he had trained to save was an irony not lost on him.

That love wasn’t just for the chimneys and buildings. He was also something of a steam engine fanatic, so much so in fact that they put paid top his first marriage. When his wife Alison left in 1985, taking their three daughters with her, she complained that Fred was "married to his engines."

There may well have been some truth in her statement, though Fred did name his beloved steam roller 'Alison' after her, changing its name to 'Betsy' (after his mother) when their marriage broke down.

The following year, he met Sue, his second wife, at a steam engine rally. They married in 1987, only to divorce nine years later. In 1998, Fred married his third wife, Sheila.

But the age of coal and steam still fascinated Fred and in 2002, he began digging a replica coal mine in his own back garden (the BBC filmed it for 'Dig with Dibnah'). His aim was to show how an early colliery worked, but with the shaft at a depth of 20 feet, the local council turned down his planning application and the project ended.

Doctor Dibnah MBE

Around the same time, Fred was awarded an MBE for services to heritage and broadcasting. Fred greeted the news of his honour in typical fashion, saying that he was "an old fashioned bloke and it is nice for the old school to get some recognition."

Sadly, Fred died later that year, shortly after completing his final series, 'Made In Britain', which saw him travelling the country in his traction engine. He had been battling with prostate cancer for three years.

It’s a mark of his popularity that thousands lined the streets of Bolton on the day of his funeral as his coffin processed through the town on the back of his traction engine and followed by his beloved steam roller, Betsy.

An engineer, an enthusiast and a genuine eccentric, Fred Dibnah was one of Bolton’s great sons and probably the most famous steeplejack ever to clamber up a chimney.