Story: Gulafshan Iqbal (granddaughter)
Born in a village on the outskirts of Peshawar, Pakistan, Mohammed Yousaf lost his dad at the age of 4 and he was brought up by his elder brother.
Mohammed was educated to the 10th standard (equivalent to GCSE) in English, which was quite rare at the time. At the age of 20 he got the opportunity to come to England and work in the steel industry, working for 10 years at Forgemasters in Attercliffe. He lived on Baltic Road, before moving to Goddard Hall Road in the 1970s, and then to Abbeyfield Road in 1997.
As he was educated and spoke English he became a forklift truck driver. He was made redundant in 1971, as the steel factories began to outsource work. With his English and driving skills, he was able to pass his taxi test in 1971, driving a black cab until 2001 before driving a private hire cab until 2011, with City cabs.
Mohammed had a difficult time, like many people from an Asian background, settling into Britain. He wasn’t accepted at first, but his English helped him make many friends in the area.
He was diagnosed with stage 4 lung cancer on 10th May 2011, before that he had been completely healthy, regularly exercising at the Hilton Hotel gym. He had a cough for many years, which he thought was due to smoking, but after feeling pains in his chest he insisted that the doctors look into it further, and they found advanced cancer. He had radiotherapy and chemotherapy, at Weston Park Clinic, which reduced the tumour. In March he was readmitted to Northern General and diagnosed with a brain cancer. Many of the nurses who treated him at Northern General recognised him, because he had picked them up from work in his cab. Passing on the 2nd April at 7.45pm, he was surrounded by all his loved ones. He is now resting at Southey Green Cemetery.
He was such a cheerful, joyous, charismatic person that he lightened the place up, and that’s why so many people still remember him and miss him.
He left a wife, brother, nine children and many grandchildren who miss him dearly. May he rest in peace.