My former colleague John Friend, who has died aged 89, was a biochemist at Hull University, where he was head of the plant biology department from 1969 until his retirement some 30 years later. He was also a keen advocate for Judaism in the Hull area, encouraging local people to gain a better understanding of the religion into which he was born and committed to promoting interfaith understanding.
John was born in Liverpool to Richard Friend, a draper, and his wife, Lilian (nee Jonas). At Liverpool Collegiate school he gained his A-level equivalents when only 16, so had to wait two years before attending Liverpool University, where he achieved a first in biochemistry, followed by a PhD.
He then moved to Cambridge University to study the effects of low temperatures on plant pigments that contribute to photosynthesis and which give many fruits and vegetables their distinctive colours. This work, important for food transport and storage, gained John another PhD.
I met him when he was appointed as a lecturer in botany at the University of Hull in 1960: I attended his first lecture there as a new undergraduate. John soon became a senior lecturer and then, in 1969, professor and head of the botany (later renamed plant biology) department. At Hull he continued his earlier research, together with new studies of how crop plants resist infection by pathogens, and his wider activities included becoming a signatory to the 1972 Blueprint for Survival, an early environmental manifesto. He also served as dean of science, then pro vice-chancellor (science) of the university.
Visits to other biochemists around the globe took him to the Hebrew University of Jerusalem, leading to a renewed interest in the teachings of Judaism. Being liberal-minded and not uncritical of Israeli politics, John believed in tolerance and the need to foster intercultural understanding through collaboration. He therefore became the first chair of the Hull Academic Study Group on Israel and the Middle East, organising academic exchange visits.
After he retired, John became active in the Hull and East Riding Interfaith group, welcoming schoolchildren and students to the Hull Reform Synagogue and patiently answering questions with his characteristic quiet enthusiasm. He also chaired the local Standing Advisory Council for Religious Education.
John was a gentle, cultured and compassionate man with an infectious sense of humour and an acute appreciation of life’s absurdities. He was a generous friend to many, and a dedicated family man.
He is survived by his wife, Carol (nee Loofe), a former student counsellor at the University of Hull, whom he married in 1956, and their three children, Mark, Jenny and Richard.
