A former farmer who turned his back on agriculture to open a chain of betting shops has died.

Frederick George Hudson, of Kennet Close, Grove, was a well-known figure in Wantage and Didcot, where he ran two bookmaker's. Before this he farmed 164 acres at Sparsholt, near Wantage.

He was the managing director of Hudson-Exley Ltd Bookmaker's until he retired in the mid 1980s. He died aged 87, after a short illness while recovering from a stroke in the John Radcliffe Hospital.

Mr Hudson leaves a widow, Rose, 83, four children, 13 grandchildren and 12 great-grandchildren.