SCTE NEWS
Mike Thornton A Tribute By Ben Allwright
Through it all, Mike brought the same qualities that I so admired: judgement and pragmatism, pace, ingenuity and a warm sense of humour. He built and shaped companies, yes — but more importantly, he shaped people. He was a man of principles, a mentor, a guide and a great friend. He was also an adventurer – it was Mike that leapt at the chance to climb the 100ft radio tower in Woodcote when we established the wireless ISP, Countryside Broadband. And at the end of a long day up a ladder, I never tired of heading to the bar to sink a few ales and a fair share of his favourite single malts – enjoying his company, his many ideas and stories. In later years, Mike poured those same skills and energy into the SCTE, chairing the training committee and travelling widely - helping to reshape and revitalise the society, cementing its role as a respected learning hub for the industry. It was a fitting home for his experience, his leadership and his belief in developing others. Mike’s work, character and insight live on in the networks he built, the organisations he strengthened, and the countless people he lifted along the way. So, we say goodbye to a remarkable man. A man of dignity, humour and strength. A true cable giant who gave far more than he ever took, and whose legacy is woven into the careers and lives of so many in our industry. Thank you, Mike — for the opportunities, the adventures, the lessons and the friendship. You were one of a kind, and we will carry your influence with us always.
Many of you will have known Mike Thornton, who sadly passed away in March after a tough battle with cancer. With a lifetime in telecoms, Mike was a man whose influence ran deep. He was many things — a leader, a mentor, a proper engineer, a builder of networks in every sense — but above all, he was a steady, generous presence in the lives of those lucky enough to work alongside him. I first met Mike in the early days of my career at Carlton Cabletime where he taught me the glories of cable RF, of network design and planning — with inked out maps and green screen PCs that felt like the future. The 90s were formative years for me and for cable: technology forward, full of characters, chaos and more learning than I realised at the time. Soon after I joined Mike at Claybrook, working from a rather damp marquee on a chicken farm and designing networks for the cable altnets. And this was the pattern throughout my early working life; it was often Mike that pulled me back into something exciting, like a start-up or a consulting assignment. He was an entrepreneur by nature and loved to create and follow opportunity. Moreover, he backed people long before they’d earned it, giving them room to grow. I was lucky to be one of those people and that belief shaped my whole career and the successes that followed. When he was Networks Managing Director for ComTel, we built cable across Salisbury, Oxfordshire, Staffordshire, Coventry and Swindon. After we’d successfully integrated the Telecential footprint and business, and were later morphed into Ntl, our paths crossed again and again — the Isle of Wight, OMNE in Scotland, Newtel in Jersey — each chapter with its own cast of characters, its own challenges and its own stories.
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