The curious case of the cremation urn left at Newbury racecourse

Urn with loving messages to ‘Gary Bonsor’ to be buried in local churchyard as efforts to find family draw a blank

It is a puzzling story with a still unsolved mystery at its heart: just who is the individual whose cremated remains were left on the counter of a burger van at Newbury racecourse?

And why – despite the cremation urn being labelled with a name and a message that hints at a loving family – has no one come forward to claim it?

Despite extensive inquiries by the racecourse and local police officers, no next of kin have been identified for the person named as Gary Bonsor on a sticker on the side of the urn. No racegoers could shed any light on the mystery, and the local crematoriums were also unable to help.

Now, after a petition to the ecclesiastical court of the Diocese of Oxford, Mr Bonsor – or whoever the urn contains – will finally be laid to rest in a local parish churchyard. Though the wishes of the person’s next of kin may not be known, according to the vicar of St Mary’s, Greenham, this will at least give the ashes “a permanent resting place”.

The curious case of the cremation urn, the fast food van, the racecourse and the medieval church court began at a race meeting on 24 July last year, when, according to police at Newbury station, “the urn and contents [were] left on a burger van counter”.

Two printed stickers were stuck to the side of the urn, reading “RIP GARY BONSOR” and “MY DAD MY HERO”. But though the racecourse checked all that day’s tickets for the unusual surname and wrote to all ticket-holders, there was no response.

Eventually, a member of racecourse staff took the urn to Newbury police station, part of Thames Valley police, who made their own extensive searches and contacted local crematoriums “who were unable to provide information”.

According to a document published earlier this month by the consistory court of the Diocese of Oxford, “the police attempted to trace the next of kin and although they thought they knew the family, said family denied any link to the urn”.

With police having also drawn a blank, the urn eventually passed last September to a churchwarden from St Mary’s, Greenham, a Grade II* listed church close to the racecourse site.

There, further efforts were made to trace family members, again without success. The parochial church council unanimously agreed the ashes should be buried in the church’s graveyard, but the vicar, the Rev Gail Minter, judged she could not legally do so without a faculty , or legal document, issued by the consistory court of the Diocese of Oxford – an ancient ecclesiastical court of the Church of England.

“The church is well used, well kept and is full of the graves of local people, many of whom did not profess a Christian faith or come to church,” wrote Minter in a petition to the court. “So we feel that although we cannot know the wishes of the deceased or the family, it would not be inappropriate to bury the remains in the parish churchyard.”

David R Hodge KC, who sits as worshipful chancellor of the court, agreed, and on the Third Sunday after Trinity – 21 June – granted permission for the burial to go ahead, and to take place within four weeks. Though its location will be noted, the grave will be unmarked.

In a statement, the Diocese of Oxford said: “The dignity and the privacy of the deceased have been the principal factors in all decisions taken in this case.” Newbury racecourse and Thames Valley police were contacted for comment.