Denis Rooke

Sir Denis Eric Rooke (2 April 1924 – 2 September 2008) was an English industrialist and engineer.

Early life Denis Eric Rooke was born in New Cross, London, the younger son of Frederick George Rooke, a printer and travelling salesman, and his wife Ada Emily née Brown. He attended Westminster City School and Addey and Stanhope School before studying mechanical engineering at University College London, taking a first-class degree in 1944. He then served in REME in Britain and India until 1949, attaining the rank of major. and they had a daughter, Diana.

Career From 1949 he worked in the gas industry, first on coal tar by-products at the South Metropolitan Gas works where he was appointed deputy manager of the tar works in 1954. He was seconded to North Thames Gas in 1957 to work on reforming processes for producing town gas from natural gas and oil. He also worked on liquefied natural gas (LNG), pioneering the sea transport of LNG. He was aboard the ship, the Methane Pioneer, making the first delivery to Canvey Island of LNG to the UK in 1959.

Rooke joined the board of the Gas Council in 1966 as the member for production and supplies, with responsibility for developing gas fields. His greatest achievement was to help to bring natural gas from the North Sea to domestic, commercial and industrial premises across Britain. This entailed the conversion of all gas appliance and the construction of a network of high pressure pipelines. He claimed this was "perhaps the biggest peacetime operation in the nation's history".

He became deputy chairman of the Gas Council in 1972 and, along with the chairman, Sir Henry Jones, and Sir Arthur Hetherington, he was responsible for combining the Gas Council and 12 separate gas boards into the British Gas Corporation in 1973. Chancellor of Loughborough University from 1989 to 2003 and a building was named after him. Awarded in 1987 an honorary degree (Doctor of Laws) from the University of Bath. Fellow of the Royal Society 1978. Awarded Rumford Medal 1986.