Michael was a good friend. We first met at Europython in Birmingham in 2008, but it was some time later, when he came to a PyPy sprint in Leysin in Switzerland that our friendship took off. Being in the same house for a week meant that we not only worked on code together but shared a lot of life experiences. Michael was about to become a father for the first time and he was both happy and anxious about it. After that, we have kept up with each other at conferences and over social media. We shared a passion for teaching and would share materials from time to time. It is said that the border between being a genius and being insane is very thin. Michael was very open about having been insane for a number of years, and I admired him for the ability to pull himself back from that dark place and into the realm of geniality. I will sorely miss him.
Michael was a wonderful, kind, intelligent and thoughtful friend. He was a standout in an amazing community of incredibly smart and compassionate developers I was lucky to be part of.
Though we had not spoken in some time, I know we could at any time, and pick up right where we left off, just like we had innumerable times before.
Iām going to miss him.
I was so sorry to hear about Michael. I first heard from him in early 2006. We had just started a new company and there were two of us on the team, both experienced software developers. Weād just hired our third dev, another career coder, but as an XP shop that paired on all production code, we needed a fourth. We posted on the Python.org jobs list to see who we could find, and we got a bunch of applications, among them one from the cryptically-named Fuzzyman, a sales manager at a building supplies merchant who was planning a career change to programming.
Heād been coding as a hobby (I think because a game he enjoyed supported Python scripting), and while he was a bit of an unusual candidate, he wowed us when he came in. But even then, we almost didnāt hire him ā there was another person who was also really good, and a bit more conventional, so initially we made an offer to him. To our great fortune, the other person turned the offer down and we asked Michael to join the team. I wrote to my co-founders āit was an extremely close thing and - now that the dust is settling - I think [Michael] may have been the better choice anyway.ā
That was certainly right! Michaelās outgoing and friendly nature changed the companyās culture from an inward-facing group of geeks to active members of the UK Python community. He got us sponsoring and attending PyCon UK, and then PyCon US, and (not entirely to our surprise) when we arrived at the conferences, we found that he already appeared to be best friends with everyone. Itās entirely possible that heād never actually met anyone there before ā with Michael, you could never be sure.
Michaelās warm-hearted outgoing personality, and his rapidly developing technical skills, made him become an ever-more visible character in the Python community, and he became almost the companyās front man. Iām sure a bunch of people only joined our team later because theyād met him first.
I remember him asking one day whether we would consider open-sourcing the rather rudimentary mocking framework weād built for our internal unit-testing. I was uncertain, and suggested that perhaps he would be better off using it for inspiration while writing his own, better one. He certainly managed to do that.
Sadly things didnāt work out with that business, and Michael decided to go his own way in 2009, but we stayed in touch. One of the great things about him was that when you met him after multiple months, or even years, you could pick up again just where you left off. At conferences, if you found yourself without anyone you knew, you could just follow the sound of his booming laugh to know where the fun crowd were hanging out. We kept in touch over Facebook, and I always looked forward to the latest loony posts from Michael Foord, or Michael Fnord as he posted as during his fairly-frequent bansā¦
This weekendās news came as a terrible shock, and I really feel that weāve lost a little bit of the soul of the Python community. Rest in peace, Michael ā the world is a sadder and less wonderfully crazy place without you.
This is a huge bummer.
My father first made me aware of Michael in probably 2006, with a link to his blog and something about him being an interesting guy to followāhe was certainly right.
I first talked to Michael over email in 2008 about his ConfigObj library based on either a scheduled talk or lightning talk (canāt remember) at PyCon 2008 in Chicago. It wasnāt until 2009 that we met in person, also at PyCon in Chicago, and he took me in like an old friend and introduced me to a bunch of great people. From there on, I saw him at every PyCon for many years straight and each time we picked up as if it hadnāt been a full year since seeing each other. Of course as I got into core dev in 2010 and he was already involved, we chatted more in the interim, and we chatted a lot on Twitter, in-person was just so much more with him.
In 2011 he reached out to refer me for a job at Canonical that he thought me a good fit for. It was, and it changed the course of my career, and frankly my life. We got some extra hang outs during my time there on work trips to London, which was a bonus.
One of my favorite connections with Michael is a bit silly, but I am registered with Disney as his talent agent. In 2012 after PyCon in Santa Clara, Paul Hildebrandt wanted to bring Michael down to Disney to give a talk, but it was problematic to pay him due to not being a US citizen (something about taxes). I happened to be sitting around during the conversation, and a few phone calls and emails later, I was set. They paid me, I think I forgot about the taxes, and then I paid Michael. I still get emails from time to time from that Disney system.
I took some time away from PyCons, but I picked up with Michael a few years back like it had just been one year prior like usual.
Rest in peace, Michael. I hope all the best for your family.
Itās a sad way to start Monday, with the news that Michael Foord passed away.
While I never met Michael in person it was a pleasure to know him online.
You were always there to answer a question or help when needed, and I will miss your jokes.
Your contribution to the Python ecosystem made me a better developer and helped many more. You will never be forgotten.
GNU Michael Foord
Iām saddened to hear this news. I first ran into Micheal in person at EuroPython in Birmingham 2009, I think when I was excited to talk to him about his work with Resolver One (the Python-based spreadsheet) and IronPython. I got a huge amount out of his book IronPython in Action, which he wrote with Christian Muirhead.
We last met at another EuroPython in 2017 in Edinburgh, where we discussed ways of teaching Python over several pints.
There a a few places in our production code where we use Michaelās unitest.mock library in unconventional ways to bend rules and step beyond norms. These will serve as a constant reminder of him, and seem like fitting memorials to his unconventional approach to life.
I only crossed paths with Michael a few times at various PyCons over the years. But I first encountered him online, noticing all these interesting and useful posts from this voidspace fellow over and over again. It was a pleasure to know him briefly and itās a sadness to hear that heās gone.
Rest in peace, Michael.
The first time I heard of Michael was in 2008, when I was looking for a Python implementation for .NET and came across IronPython.
We met at various Python events, PyCon US 2019 in Cleveland, we were in the same AirBnb, it was really cool the conversations with him. And the very last time was at the Language Summit at Bloomberg in London. From time to time, Iād see posts about him travelling the world to talk about Python. And now, looking at my Facebook feed, Iāve just learned that heās passed away. Itās quite a shock. Michael, Iāll always remember you as a jovial, generous person and a Pythonista through and through.
Rest in peace, Michael.
I found out about this over the weekend, what a shock ā I just had dinner with Michael and a few other Python people at the end of last year, and I think, that very morning, I was catching up on some facebook posts of his - he was prolific.
I wanted to say that Michael was at least indirectly responsible for me writing my first book. I joined Resolver a few months after he left, and so I already felt close to him. Heād written a book, and somehow that made it plausible, rather than ridiculous, that I might someday write a book.
He soon became one of my best Pythonfriends, someone I might only see a few times a year but that I felt very close to. Thereās not too much for me to add over what people have already said about what an extraordinary individual he was but i might just repeat some of it anyway - such great conversation, such an original thinker, always coming at things from an unexpected angle, with a strong opinion, but always with humility and listening as much as he ever held forth. In that way heāll always be an inspiration to me.
Whatās always been special to me about the Python community was the innate approachability of the leaders of the community. Michael Foord exemplifies that approachability.
When I first got into Python, I picked a little niche corner because of the team that I was working on at the time: testing. Turned out this wasnāt a niche corner - it was a vibrant community of people, libraries, and ideas.
The āTesting in Pythonā mailing list was born and Michael played a huge part in the discussions and was always a regular presenter at the many TiP BoFās (testing in python birds of a feather) at PyCon over the years between 2009-2017.
Michaelās energy, knowledge, wit, and wisdom will be missed. I am glad to have shared time with him, I am deeply sorry for his family and their loss.
I know I was able to scrabble together some polite words, but this news just hits me like a gut punch. And I didnāt even know Michael that well.
I want to encourage his friends to reach out to folks, even beyond this discussion thread. It helps to talk. And if you donāt quite know the words for your feelings, talking helps you find them.
There I was, a first-time canonical offsite attendee, standing next to Michael Foordāthe creator of the mock testing library I had admired for years. It felt like meeting a coding celebrity! To my surprise, we struck up a conversation, and he even invited me to dinner in Vegas. He was warm and genuinely interested in learning about me, my work, my family, and my interests. That encounter left a lasting impression, and Iāve always had great memories of him!
The language summit before I became a core developer and long before I knew I would end up in academia, Micheal and I discussed discussed ideas about Python teaching and training (some of his interests at the time), and later connected when I had overlapping plans when I was nominating/joining the PSF board.
I will agree with others and say Micheal Foord was full of originality and quite frankly my kind of tribe to engage with.
Am sad we will never sync and follow up on some of the discussions we had.
Andrea and I were both lucky enough to have known Michael. At PyCon 2014 in Montreal we spontaneously walked around all day with Michael and had a great time exploring the city and learning about his life (we even witnessed his beard get trimmed!). We were also lucky enough for him to graciously house us in 2017 for a visit. Getting to see that positive energy for days was lovely. Michael was one of those people you always actively hoped made it to a conference so you could see them.
We already miss him.
Wow, this news came as a shock. Around 2008, I wrote fudge as an alternative to Michaelās mock ā fudge offered more of a declarative interface. Michaelās mock was also lacking some features at the time. However, Michael was so prolific that mock quickly grew superpowers and became rock solid. Albeit magical, it emodied the ethos of āpythonicā: simple, easy to use, works as expected. I realized I could re-write fudge as a thin layer on top of mock (after a few patches) and be done. Michael got a kick out of this.
It was wonderful to interact with him on the Testing in Python list, both of us completely test obsessed. As Terry Peppers mentioned, the list was a tight knit group focused on collaboration. When finally meeting āvoidspaceā at PyCon it was as if we already knew each other. I donāt recall when we first met but the 2012 testing birds-of-a-feather (PyCon, Santa Clara) stands out for me. His booming energy filled the room (and the halls).
He, like many others, inspired me to build and collaborate with this community of colorful characters.
Brian Okken: thanks for that interview: Test & Code podcast episode 145 āFor those about to mock.ā I just listened and it brought back great memories. Michael talked about that āgolden eraā of Python when our gatherings were smaller. Perhaps it was easier to get to know one another.
Iāll miss his booming laugh and wild style but Iām grateful for having that time together online. My heart goes out to his family.
Iāll post a follow-up with links.
TiP (testing in Python) BoF (birds of a feather), Python 2012. I love how this page still has everyoneās name on there. Hello, friends!
https://us.pycon.org/2012/community/openspaces/testingbof/
Michael Foord and Chad Whitacre at the TiP BoF, photo by Kenneth Reitz
Test & Code podcast episode 145 āFor those about to mock"
Brian Okken interviewing Michael Foord. He goes into the origin story of mock, his testing philosophy, reviving unittestā¦
Testing in Python list where Michael frequently helped people with testing questions:
https://web.archive.org/web/20250000000000*/http://lists.idyll.org/listinfo/testing-in-python
I first ran into Michael back in late 2007 through either Twitter or his blog on voidspace.org.uk - canāt remember anymore.
Fascinated by his Python writings, I gathered some courage to sent a job application to Resolver Systems, the company he was working on at the time in London. Much to my delight, I managed to secure an on-site interview where shortly after I joined the team that I think frankly shaped my work ethic and propelled my software career to this day.
He was of course part of that: a sharp mind, always ready to help a beginner out, always kind, always supportive.
I fondly recall his distinct smell back in those days: coffee, that he would drink from a huge thermos mug, plus a faint whiff of cigarette smoke every now and then.
I also recall his thunderous laugh, the absurd and comical and heartbreaking stories of his early-life troubles, his local volunteering, the fierce debates that he would always carry, always light heartedā¦
Since leaving the UK in 2009 Iāve lost touch with him, but every now and then I would visit his Twitter feed and smile to see him in great shape, in great attire, active and happy and, well, full of life.
I received the news with a terrible shock and pain. My sincere condolences to his family. He was truly a unique individual. Rest in peace, fuzzyman.
Ian Oszvald has asked me to post this in Michaelās memory:
Michael was my friend. We first met through PyConUKs in Coventry (if
memory serves), he was always friendly and welcoming. I knew of him
of course, somehow Iād ended up in the voidspace more than once
earlier in my Python journey. Meeting the legend was a Big Deal. Pubs
became involved. It was so good to see him (and some of you) back in
November. He was always more than tolerant - that time in the pub I
grabbed his beard for a more than affectionate tug should have gained
me more than a grin in return. This has knocked me sideways and I
shall miss him. Ian.