ONE OF the longest surviving kidney transplant patients in the UK, Frank Bradford, from Ferndown, has died at the age of 82.

Ernest Frank Bradford was born in India to Wilfred and Louisa Bradford, the second eldest of four siblings, Yvonne, Arthur and Lily. He was always known as Frank to all his family and friends.

In 1948 the family moved to England when Frank was 13 years old and they lived in Saffron Walden in Essex.

After leaving school Frank joined the railways and when he was 18 he took a break to do his National Service, returning back to the railways after he had completed his service.

"Frank's health deteriorated and having spent eight or nine years on a protein rich diet, he was put on a kidney dialysis machine. Then after a further two years he was placed on the life giving transplant programme," said Nishi Fraser, his step daughter-in-law.

"On October 21 1969 aged 34 Frank was given one of the first kidney transplants in the UK at the Hammersmith and Fulham Hospital, London. The kidney was flown into the country from Ireland."

The transplant enabled Frank to lead a relatively normal life and he became one of the longest surviving kidney transplant patients in the UK.

Frank became a legal accountant working in London. He was married to his first wife, Mollie, for 34 years, and they moved to Ferndown in 1985 where they lived until 1998 when Mollie passed away from cancer at the Macmillan Unit in Christchurch.

"Frank was an extremely happy, generous and practical gentleman who became a volunteer driver for the Macmillan Unit. It was here in 2000 where he met my husband, Stephen's mother Freta, who had lost her husband to cancer and had become a volunteer herself," said Nishi.

Love blossomed and in 2001 they were married at the Langtry Manor Hotel in Bournemouth.

Frank and Freta lived in Ferndown and in 2015 moved into a McCarthy and Stone retirement apartment in Ringwood. After several months of failing health Frank passed away on November 14 peacefully at the Macmillan Unit.

Frank's funeral will be held on December 7 at 3pm at the Hinton Park Woodland Burial Ground, Walkford, Christchurch.