Martin, also known to the family as Mart was born into a farming family in 1942, the son of Arthur and Dolly Clarke. The youngest of six - Mont, Sue, Dave, Rob,Virg and Mart they grew up together on Amberley Court Farm.
Farming was a very important part of his formative years - and its influence remained with him for the rest of his life.
He was a keen Sportsman and football in particular was a passion from an early age. Being a practical lad after leaving school he pursued his interest in carpentry taking up an apprenticeship and becoming a qualified carpenter.
He married his first wife Mary Nanette Clarke in 1961 and I followed very soon after. They lived on the farm for a short time before moving to Taunton, Somerset - where Martin worked as a carpenter on new build homes whilst Mary worked as a nurse. Gainfully employed as a successful tradesman, they were eventually able to purchase a new home of their own - in order to keep costs down Martin did much of the carpentry work without pay - He was always one to keep an eye on the pennies. The house they bought was adjacent to farm land and had a large garden where Martin grew veg and kept chickens but the good life was not to be. Martin and Mary struggled to make there marriage work and eventually separated in the mid 70's after which he returned to his roots in Gloucestershire.
In the early 80's he met Sue and daughter Katrina. They married and together they worked towards their dream of raising a family on a farm of their own. This took some years to achieve as they renovated and developed several properties along the way including a small farm in Wales. During this time Sue even found time to give birth to Ben and Joe
Eventually the family's big break came with Stank Farm where they spent many happy years and Martin was truly in his element farming and building and raising the boys.
Many of you will have fond memories of this time. Martin and Sue developing the farm, building the holiday cottages and acquiring many animals both large and small. Some of you will remember the rides in the horse and cart, hay making in the summer, and open days where Martin drove people around the farm with the old Grey Fergie tractor. Many people helped out on the farm but in particular it seems appropriate to acknowledge the work and support given over the years by his elder brother Rob.
These times were very rewarding and fulfilling but in latter years the family went through some tough times: Foot and mouth, Dad's fall and the resulting spinal injury, the loss of his wife Sue and the subsequent sale of the farm in 2006 all took their toll.
After the loss of Sue the family struggled to cope - and many of us are well aware of the important role Katrina played in getting through those difficult years.
Following the sale of the farm he moved to Coleford and had to adapt to a very different way of living.
Martin's pragmatic view of life enabled him to deal remarkably well with the considerable impact his injury had on his physical health and mobility.
He had a wry knowing sense of humour - for example His T shirt with "Get of my land" and his often used phrase "Stop Laffin" come to mind. He was known to say that he was never happier than when he was moaning. A standing joke was that Martin would say that on Christmas Eve he'd be off to Poundland to buy Sue's Christmas present - a farmer's purse strings are always tight.

To sum up
Martin had integrity and honesty. Those that new him recognised this and he was liked and loved by many.

A man of the land. He was always a farmer at heart. He was determined to and ultimately fulfilled his dream of working his own farm. He kept true to himself, he persevered and endured and he will be remembered.