Remembering Peterborough’s Nobby

One of Peterborough’s most colourful characters died after a short battle with illness earlier this year.

By The Newsroom

Published 24th Dec 2020, 13:08 BST

Updated 28th Dec 2020, 13:42 BST

Michael Ross - better known to most Peterborough residents as ‘Nobby’ passed away in March aged 74.

During his life Michael became a popular personality in Peterborough, as he made his home in a bus shelter on Oundle Road, and became one of Peterborough’s most famous residents.

Residents regularly left food and clothing for him and, as his fame spread, the shelter was even given its own postcode.

He hit the headlines after somebody left him some golf clubs and he was spotted showing off a rather impressive swing.

A play has been written about his life, he’s been the subject of portraits by painters and there’s even a Facebook group dedicated to him

He lived in the shelter from the 1980s through to the 2000s before he was given a home in a sheltered accommodation scheme in Figtree Walk, Dogsthorpe.

His funeral, held just before the first lockdown, saw many city residents attend, and there have been calls for a permanent memorial for him to be made for the city.

During his life he was an artist, and homes are currently being found for some of the works he created.