The true identity of a tramp known only as 'Tea Cosy Pete' who once walked 12 miles to return a wallet with £300 has been revealed after he died on the streets.
Homeless Brian Burford, 66, spent more than 30 years living rough on the streets of Swansea city centre in Wales and was given the nickname by locals for his distinctive woolly hat.
But it was only after his death last month that his real name was revealed by a coroner and former classmates and friends came forward - including ex-Archbishop of Canterbury, Dr Rowan Williams.
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A homeless man, known as 'Tea Cosy Pete', has had his true identity revealed by a coroner after he died. It was found that the tramp, who had lived rough on the streets of Swansea, was a friend of Rowan Williams
It was also found that he was a gifted young scholar but his life spiralled out of control after he was rejected from Oxford University and then his younger brother tragically died.
Dr Williams said he was 'very sad indeed' to hear of his death and remembered him as a man with 'complete integrity'.
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Share 1.4k sharesThe Master of Magdalene College, Cambridge, said: 'I remember Brian very vividly from schooldays, and was very sad indeed to hear of his death.
'He was - even as a schoolboy - a distinctive character- very withdrawn a lot of the time, but then capable of making some observation that surprised everyone.
He attended Dynevor Grammar School with Rowan Williams. Pictured in their school photograph in 1961 is Mr Burford (third from right, front row) and also sitting in the front row (fourth left) is Dr Rowan Williams
Rowan Williams, the former Archbishop of Canterbury, said he was 'very saddened' to hear of Mr Burford's death and recalled he was a 'distinctive character' and 'lived his life with complete integrity'
'I still recall a strange little poem he wrote in class about crowds and loneliness - we rather made fun of it at the time, but I realise now how deeply it was felt and meant.
'I think he simply saw and experienced life from a different angle from most of us.
'He often had a smile on his face, but it was a smile that ever so slightly suggested that the joke was on everyone else.
'I think that's how he lived his life - seeing differently, with complete integrity.'
He was born in Bath and as a teenager, he went to Dynevor Grammar School, in Swansea, in the 1960s at the same time as the former head of worldwide Anglican church.
A memorial service was held in Swansea city centre for Mr Burford and was attended by hundreds of people
A woman wipes a tear at the memorial service after the homeless man collapsed and died in the city centre
Mr Burford was a talented student from a middle-class background who got eight top grade 'O' Levels and three Grade 'A' A Levels.
But his rejection from Oxford University and the early death of his brother Bill sent him on a downward spiral from which he never recovered.
Wayne Llewellyn, who grew up close to Mr Burford's family, said: 'He was a very keen runner when he was young and I think he won the Mile race at school and he was very bright.
'He had the best qualifications he could get and made an application to Oxford University and very unfortunately for him he was refused entry.
'I believe his rejection despite his top grades may have contributed to his alternative lifestyle.
'Some years later his much loved younger brother Bill, an outstanding rugby player, was killed as a student in London.'
Mr Llewellyn said Mr Burford tried to start as a door to door salesman but drifted to a life on the streets, where he wandered for 35 years, carrying his possessions and refusing to beg.
Brian Burford (left) became well-known after he walked 12 miles to return a wallet with £300 inside to a man who had dropped it in the city centre the previous evening. Pictured right are floral tributes from locals
He became well-known in the 1990s after walking 12 miles to Kittle in Gower, to return a wallet with £300 inside to a man who had lost it in the city centre the previous evening and refusing a reward.
Mr Burford collapsed from a suspected stroke in Castle Square in the city centre and died later in hospital on January 26.
A huge outpouring of public grief followed his death and hundreds gathered in the city centre for a memorial service to pay tribute to his 'integrity and honesty'.
More than £3,000 has since been raised for a memorial bench in his memory.
A tribute paid to him by a Swansea businessman on Twitter said: 'Tea Cosy Pete offered a certain continuity that made many of us feel at home.
'After long flights from East or South Asia and a train journey from Heathrow, I would often pass through Swansea city centre and see Pete.
'We'd exchange a greeting and I'd immediately feel that I was back in Swansea.
'He was not a multi-billion dollar philanthropist but instead inspired people by his simple, gentle and honest ways which in a world driven by ruthless greed was a breath of fresh air.'
A tribute left at the memorial service for Mr Burford, whose life spiralled out of control after he was rejected from Oxford University and tragically lost his younger brother
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