After writing my post last year about the possible descendants of the silent film star Lilian Hall-Davis (the focus of a lifelong obsession for Gerard Ceunis’ friend, the Flemish novelist Johan Daisne), I sought information via a number of Hitchin-based Facebook groups. For some reason I never got around to posting the responses I received, but a recent comment on that last post has prompted me to do so, rather belatedly.
As I wrote back then, Lilian’s only son, Grosvenor Pemberton, married a woman from Hitchin by the name of Cynthia Orson and they lived at 2 Waltham Villas, which was on the corner of St John’s Road, just a short walk from the Ceunis home on Gosmore Road. Their only son, Berkeley William Howard Pemberton, was born there in 1943. Here are some of the responses I received to my request for information about him, which contradict some of my earlier tentative conclusions:
There was a Howard Pemberton who lived in St John’s Road. He was friends with my brother-in-law. He worked in Hitchin but left to live in South Africa, I last saw him in Jo’burg during the early 1990s…I know he went with a lady from the bakers in the High Street. He was an unusual character but I always found him very friendly…I think Jean Redman was with Howard in South Africa. (Anthony Bone)
I was at Bessemer School [in Hitchin] in the ‘50s and knew a Howard Pemberton, who I recall lived near St John’s Road. Could he have been related? We always thought of him as being ‘a bit posh’ at the time, but he was a great lad, full of energy!…I have a feeling he emigrated to South Africa. Another pupil from Bessemer…mentioned him when I was writing my book on Bessemer school. (Robert Prebble)
Howard came to my wedding in 1982 with Jean Redman…He was a regular fixture in The King’s Arms in the early 80s. Although I didn’t know him well he was a dapper and charming man in the old-fashioned sense. (Nick Stevens)
Howard Pemberton died in South Africa about 10 years ago…Never married. (Keith Porter)
So it would seem that, sadly, Lilian Hall-Davis has no surviving descendants who might help to solve the mystery of her possible residence in Hitchin…
The Quest for Ceunis 
I’m glad my previous comment prompted you to post this update!
Anyway, that’s quite unfortunate to hear… I really hoped for Berkeley to be still alive. He wasn’t even that old at the time of his death, if it’s true that he died ten years ago. It seems also that your assumption was correct: Grosvenor’s son did in fact discard his peculiar first name. Everyone simply knew him as Howard. Also, I’m not a native english speaker, but I think I understand the meaning under the possible euphemism “Never married”… (although he had been married twice). So it really seems unlikely Lillian Hall-Davis has any living descendant. In any case, I wish you best of luck in your future search.
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