Thomas Cedric Larkin (17 November 1917 – 17 August 2021) was a New Zealand public servant and diplomat, serving as New Zealand ambassador to Japan between 1972 and 1976. He also played representative

cricket Cricket is a bat-and-ball game played between two teams of eleven players on a field at the centre of which is a pitch with a wicket at each end, each comprising two bails balanced on three stumps. The batting side scores runs by str ...

for

Taranaki Taranaki is a region in the west of New Zealand's North Island. It is named after its main geographical feature, the stratovolcano of Mount Taranaki, also known as Mount Egmont. The main centre is the city of New Plymouth. The New Plymouth D ...

in the 1930s.

Early life and family

Born in

Wellington Wellington ( mi, Te Whanganui-a-Tara or ) is the capital city of New Zealand. It is located at the south-western tip of the North Island, between Cook Strait and the Remutaka Range. Wellington is the second-largest city in New Zealand by metr ...

on 17 November 1917, Larkin was the son of Herbert James Larkin and Irene Mary O'Connor. He was educated at

New Plymouth Boys' High School New Plymouth Boys' High School is a single-sex boys' state secondary school in New Plymouth, Taranaki, New Zealand. The school currently caters for approximately 1300 students, including 210 boarders, on its site. The school often collabora ...

, and went on to study at

Victoria University College Victoria University of Wellington ( mi, Te Herenga Waka) is a university in Wellington, New Zealand. It was established in 1897 by Act of Parliament, and was a constituent college of the University of New Zealand. The university is well know ...

, graduating

Master of Arts A Master of Arts ( la, Magister Artium or ''Artium Magister''; abbreviated MA, M.A., AM, or A.M.) is the holder of a master's degree awarded by universities in many countries. The degree is usually contrasted with that of Master of Science. Th ...

with second-class honours in 1940. While at Victoria, Larkin represented the university at

rugby union Rugby union, commonly known simply as rugby, is a close-contact team sport that originated at Rugby School in the first half of the 19th century. One of the two codes of rugby football, it is based on running with the ball in hand. In it ...

. Between 1941 and 1945, Larkin served in the Royal New Zealand Naval Volunteer Reserve. On 28 November 1970, Larkin married Sarah Marianne Williams. Their three children include the musician Tom Larkin.

Cricket

A left-hand batsman and right-arm medium-pace bowler, Larkin played

Hawke Cup The Hawke Cup is a non-first-class cricket competition for New Zealand's district associations. Apart from 1910–11, 1912–13 and 2000–01 the competition has always been on a challenge basis. To win the Hawke Cup, the challengers must beat t ...

cricket for

between 1934 and 1939. While playing for the New Plymouth Boys' High School 1st XI in 1936, Larkin and Martin Donnelly shared a record partnership of 234 that stood until 1965. As an 18-year-old, Larkin played for Taranaki in their two-day match against the touring MCC team, scoring six and four runs, respectively, in his two innings, and bowling two overs without success. In 1946, he represented

, but did not appear in any first-class matches. He also played for the New Zealand Universities team while he was a student at Victoria University College, and was awarded a cricket

blue Blue is one of the three primary colours in the RYB colour model (traditional colour theory), as well as in the RGB (additive) colour model. It lies between violet and cyan on the spectrum of visible light. The eye perceives blue when ...

Career

Larkin joined the

Department of External Affairs In many countries, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs is the government department responsible for the state's diplomacy, bilateral, and multilateral relations affairs as well as for providing support for a country's citizens who are abroad. The entit ...

in 1946. In 1953, he served as official secretary at the New Zealand High Commission in Canberra, and was the New Zealand ambassador to Japan from 1972 to 1976. The remainder of his career was spent based in Wellington. He was a New Zealand delegate to the United Nations General Assembly in 1948–1949, 1952, 1956–1958, and 1968, and attended the Suez Canal Conference in 1956. Particularly interested in Asian and Japanese affairs, Larkin wrote books on the subject, including ''New Zealand and Japan in the post-war world'', published in 1969, and ''Japan today'' (1983).

Later life and death

In the

2008 Queen's Birthday Honours The Queen's Birthday Honours 2008 were appointments by some of the 16 Commonwealth realms to various orders and honours to recognise and reward good works by citizens of those countries. The Birthday Honours are awarded as part of the Queen's Of ...

, Larkin was appointed an

Officer of the New Zealand Order of Merit The New Zealand Order of Merit is an order of merit in the New Zealand royal honours system. It was established by royal warrant on 30 May 1996 by Elizabeth II, Queen of New Zealand, "for those persons who in any field of endeavour, have ren ...

, for services to New Zealand–Japan relations. He was also awarded the Grand Cordon of the Order of the Rising Sun. Larkin was predeceased by his wife, Sarah, in 2018. He died in Wellington on 17 August 2021, aged 103.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Larkin, Tom 1917 births 2021 deaths People from Wellington City People educated at New Plymouth Boys' High School Victoria University of Wellington alumni New Zealand cricketers New Zealand public servants New Zealand diplomats Ambassadors of New Zealand to Japan Officers of the New Zealand Order of Merit New Zealand centenarians Men centenarians Johnston family Riddiford family Williams family (New Zealand)