Horwich Advertiser Issue 639

Page 12 September 2026 AD SALES 01204 478812 Publishing milestone: Steve cutting the cake to mark the Advertiser’s 500th edition ONE remark summed up the feeling following the death of Advertiser founder Steve Crawshaw – ‘Horwich will now be a lesser place’. Steve, 84, died on August 22 at Wigan Infirmary after a short illness although he had battled Parkinson’s for the last 12 years. He was surrounded by his family. Born in Renishaw, Derby- shire, in 1941, he was the eldest of three siblings. He attended Eckington Grammer School in 1953-58 where he achieved O-Levels. In later life he studied for a degree in English literature and creative writing at the then Uni- versity of Bolton. Steve’s working career started in 1960 at Sheffield steel special- ist Marrison & Catherall as a magnetics researcher. But his love of words soon saw him get a job at the Sheffield Tel- egraph newspaper in the adver- tising department, he also wrote articles for the Angling Times. In a natural progression he moved to regional publishing group United Newspapers. Pro- motion followed and he moved to Standish in the early 1970s. He met his wife Marie while covering a story on the Canberra cruise ship where she was look- ing after children from Mere Oaks School in Standish. They married in 1976 and had two daughters, Victoria and Kay. T h e Ho r w i c h a nd Westhoughton Advertiser was launched in 1980 when Steve decided he wanted to give back to a community that had given him such a warm welcome. His larger-than-life personality soon made the paper a great success. A pioneer of free local news- papers in the UK, Steve was a well-known local figure, seen with his camera and notepad at every public and special event across Horwich, Westhoughton, Blackrod and Adlington. His links with the paper con- tinued even after his well-de- served retirement. He was a special guest at the party to mark the paper’s 500th edition, alongside local civic dignitaries. Away from the world of newspapers, Steve was a great sportsman. He started off with a passion for angling and was a keen fisherman for many years. He then developed a love for shooting and once his daughters were old enough, he took them along as beaters! He took golf up in the 90s and that became his new passion. Steve was a member at Horwich Golf Club for many years until its eventual closure in 2023. His love of the game took him all over the world playing, from local courses to Spain and Amer- ica he was most proud to have at the world-famous Sawgrass course in Florida. Steve’s daughter Victoria said: “His golfing hero was Seve Bal- lesteros, and he really thought one day he might get a round with him!” Sport played a big part in Ste- ve’s life. His wife Marie intro- duced him to Rugby League and he became a massive Wigan Warriors fan. A season ticket holder for many years, watching rugby was a great pleasure and the Warri- ors became a big part of his and Marie’s life. Steve leaves behind wife Marie, daughters Victoria and Kay, sons-in-law Simon and Stu- art and grandchildren Zachary, Max, Gracie and Joshua. l Steve’s funeral will take place onMonday 21st September at 11.30am, at Charnock Richard Crematorium, then Standish Cricket Club. Everyone welcome. ‘A TRUE GENTLEMAN’ Steve with Ken Crook, who he started the paper with