Waylon Johnston writes: 

An avid contributor to the Times of Malta, Michael Owen passed away on Christmas Eve in Eastbourne, a place where he spent so many wonderful years with his partner of 40 years, Jeremy Cope.

Always following summer, Michael and Jeremy fell in love with Malta and its old world charm some 15 years ago before deciding to restore a derelict house in Żejtun.

They transformed it, like they had so many of their previous homes, into a beautiful place where friends could meet, share a laugh, a dance and enjoy life.

Michael loved to entertain and cook for friends, while Jeremy would regale friends with incredibly funny anecdotes from their travels and the hilarious situations they found themselves in.

Never one to shy away from a debate, Michael loved Malta more than any other place he had lived and became passionate about life and politics, often writing to the Times of Malta to express an opinion on what was going on.

He revelled in the responses he would receive, especially the stock “go back to your country” or “if you don’t like it, leave”, completely baffled at how so many were sensitive, instead of engaging in debate he loved so much.

Michael became a Member of the British Empire in 1993, when, as an employee of BT Telecommunication Services, he ensured that all communications lines were reinstated following a particularly bad IRA truck bomb in Bishopsgate, London, that left an enormous crater disabling many underground lines.

Often mistaken for David Bowie, he would love to play the game before admitting that, in fact, he was not Bowie only after he was asked for an autograph, his sense of humour always shining through.

May Michael continue to enjoy those long wonderful lunches in the sun, with that beautiful smile across his face.

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