AN Ipswich man who died suddenly of a heart attack is being remembered by his friends and family with a memorial.

AN Ipswich man who died suddenly of a heart attack is being remembered by his friends and family with a memorial.

Wayne Barrett was 38 when he collapsed and died at his mother's home in Stratford Road, on March 21 last year.

Now old school friends of Mr Barrett plan to remember him by having a permanent memorial erected in his honour.

Close friend, Robert Sadler, 39, of Norwich Road, said: “He was such a fantastic human being; he was funny, entertaining, sensitive and talented.

“He was a musician, an actor and a caring man; he was just a totally fantastic human being who everyone loved dearly.”

Mr Barrett moved to Ipswich in 1971 with his mother and later attended Thurleston High School, in Defoe Road, where he took up amateur dramatics - a passion he shared with Mr Sadler.

Mr Sadler said: “We did amateur dramatics together and we went through the teenage years together, we performed plays at the Wolsey Theatre and at our school.

“We even filmed our own play at one point.”

After studying at college in Birmingham Mr Barrett became a sound engineer for the BBC and although he was living in London at the time of his death, he was making plans to return to Ipswich.

A large group of Mr Barrett's school friends attended his funeral at Whitton Baptist Church, along with their former English teacher Tom Howard.

Mr Sadler is now calling on friends of Mr Barrett to attend a meeting on Thursday, August 30, to discuss having a memorial at his old school.

Everyone who knew Mr Barrett is asked to meet at the Man in the Moon pub, in Palmcroft Road at 8pm.

For more information call Mr Sadler on 07743 721234.

Have you lost a loved one? How have you decided to remember them? Write to Your Letters, Evening Star, 30 Lower Brook Street, Ipswich IP4 1AN or e-mail eveningstarletters@eveningstar.co.uk