A correspondent writes:

MURRAY GRANT who died on 30 April, was born in Bristol in 1936. He had an uneasy relationship with his father and, at the age of 16, joined the merchant navy. From 1955 to 1962, he was a steward on the Queen Mary, sailing between Southampton and New York and serving the rich, famous, and titled, including the Duke and Duchess of Windsor, Bing Crosby, Noël Coward, and other celebrities.

Returning to dry land, he ran a restaurant in Dartmouth, Devon. He became friendly with the curate of St Saviour’s, Dartmouth, began to attend church there, and had a profound religious awakening. From there, he went on to theological college at Chichester to train for the priesthood.

Murray served in as assistant priest at St Anne’s, Stanley, in Liverpool, and then moved to London as assistant priest of St Mary Magdalene’s, Munster Square, by Regents Park, followed by St Saviour’s and St James the Less, Pimlico. After these appointments, he became the Vicar of the Holy Innocents’, Ravenscourt Park, where he undertook a massive remodelling of the oversized Victorian church to create a more intimate space for worship, community facilities, and a music rehearsal room with superb acoustics.

He was deeply committed to the provision of social and psychological support, and received a diploma in Human Relationships from the Richmond Fellowship College.

His marriage, at Munster Square, to Nina Baden-Semper, a star of the TV sitcom Love Thy Neighbour, received wide press coverage and introduced him to the vibrant world of show business.

His final full-time assignment as the Chaplain of Christ Church, Naples, and with a corresponding chaplaincy at the NATO base near by. From Naples, he would phone in his weekly spiritual chats broadcast live in the Pause for Thought slot during Terry Wogan’s Radio 2 breakfast show.

One of his most avid listeners was apparently Queen Elizabeth II. In 2001, he was invited for lunch at Buckingham Palace with the Queen and Prince Philip.

His retirement took him to Tunisia, where he felt able to enjoy a Mediterranean lifestyle that was affordable on his modest church pension.

After a heart ailment and a stroke in 2008, Murray returned to London and, after hospitalisation at the Royal Free and St Pancras Hospital, moved into sheltered accommodation at Ashdown Crescent, in Kentish Town. He recovered well, and was soon assisting at services, including baptisms, weddings, and funerals, at St Martin’s, Gospel Oak, his parish church.

Murray was a lifelong avid gardener and soon had the communal terrace at Ashdown Crescent resembling the hanging gardens of Babylon. He won several Camden Council awards for urban gardening.

He leaves behind his partner, Amine, and two children, Caroline and Joe.