Obituary - Trevor Willison

When super typhoon Mangkhut battered Hong Kong on September 16, 2018, veteran journalist Trevor Willison, who died this week aged 80, braved the raging winds and blinding rain to help bring out The Standard.

Along the way, he overcame a five-hour wait in a shuttered mall, a nervy ride to work with a few other brave sub-editors in a jam-packed car and, later, a lonely trek back home in the dead of night.

The marathon effort was all the more remarkable given Trevor's age and failing health at the time. At 75, walking was already a struggle even on a bright summer's day, let alone a Signal 10 typhoon.

Still, it came as no surprise to those who knew his relentless work ethic: work came first, come rain or riot.

A long-time expat, Trevor started his career at a newspaper in the UK before moving to Cape Town where he edited a newspaper and raised a family.

In the nineties, he headed to Hong Kong - a place he grew to love and call home for the next three decades - first working for the South China Morning Post before moving to The Standard in 2007.

Known for his clever turn of phrase, dry wit, aversion to political correctness - and, when merited, capable of uttering a few short and sharp words - Trevor became a sort of cause celebre in 2006 after the Post's then-editor-in-chief fired him over a saucy mock farewell page for a departing colleague.

Their loss was The Standard's gain.

Newspapers can be like cantankerous babies - noisy, cranky and hard to put to bed - and no one knew that better than Trevor, who had the patience of Job and would stay back night after night after the other subs had flown to polish that all-important lead for the front page.

A history genius and bookworm who could turn a sow's ear into a silk purse while editing poor copy, Trevor was an inspiration to both young and seasoned subs, yet always quick to put life into perspective.

"Don't take things too seriously," he would say with a twinkle in his eye.

Trevor's joie de vivre was infectious, and his simple nature won hearts and minds wherever he went.

But he was much more than a skilled sub. An ardent lover of nature and an avid hiker in his time, Trevor was happiest at a beach, country park or far-flung island getaway, far from the malls and madding crowds.

He could sit for hours in the wilderness, listening to the birds chatter and marveling at the breathtaking scenery around him or that "wild sunset" by the beach.

Trevor grew increasingly frail last year and, after semi-retiring in July 2022, he left his beloved Hong Kong but continued to work for The Standard from his rustic home by a beach in the Philippines.

He worked until his last breath, with his final Monday on this Earth epitomizing this ethic: after subbing what would be his final story, he informed the desk, matter-of-factly, that he needed to be rushed to hospital.

He lost the fight for life the next night with longtime partner and wife Phina by his side.

One of the finest journalists of his generation, Trevor's lessons in life go further than the art of editing.

He showed us what it means to be generous and kind, and opened our eyes to the beautiful planet we all live on.

His indefatigable spirit will remain an inspiration to us to rise and shine, no matter what the odds.

Oh, and not take life too seriously.