30/07/2026
Obituary: Micheal Rycroft, 28 April 1947 – 14 July 2026
It is with great sadness that we report the passing of Mike Rycroft – a much-respected electrical engineer, writer and features editor in the telecommunication and power sectors of South Africa.
Irene Blythe, director at EE Publishers, first got to know Mike Rycroft as a regular contributor of technical articles to Elektron magazine during his time as the senior engineer responsible for power supply to a wide range of telecommunication facilities right across South Africa.
So, when Irene heard of Mike’s pending retirement from Telkom, she immediately knew what an asset he would be as a writer, features editor and editor for EE Publisher’s Energize and Elektron magazines and immediately offered him a permanent position at the company.
Mike Rycroft accepted and joined EE Publishers in 2008, where his broad technical knowledge and experience in both the telecommunications and power sectors was quickly put to good use in the business.
While Mike had a reserved and thoughtful personality, he got on well with his editorial, production and advertising sales colleagues. He was a meticulous, diligent and prolific writer, and really blossomed within EE Publishers, where made himself a truly indispensable part of the team.
In Mike’s later years at EE Publishers, his position as a technical writer and features editor lent itself to working from home, but Mike would always drop by at the office for several days a week where is personal interactions were needed and highly appreciated.
Mike was always an enthusiastic participant at internal and external company and industry events, launches and technical symposiums, conferences and exhibitions, from which he drew inspiration for his writing, covering both industry news and technical articles.
After the closure of EE Publishers in November 2019 and the sale of its Energize and Elektron titles to Now Media, Mike was quickly snapped up and employed by the new owners because of his vast experience and prolific writing skills. Mike continued his writing for Now Media as long as his health allowed.
On behalf of all Mike’s former colleagues, Chris Yelland and Irene Blythe, the former directors of EE Publishers, and Anton Marsh, the managing director at Now Media, extend their deep-felt condolences to Mike Rycroft’s dear wife Rosemary, their children and grand-children and friends.
We have very fond memories of Mike and the work and leisure times together over the years. He will be sorely missed as a staff member, colleague and friend.
May his soul rest in peace.
