Painter of landscapes and church works, and writer. He studied at Eastbourne and Brighton Schools of Art and under William Rothenstein at Royal College of Art, 1923–7. Showed at RA, NEAC, Goupil Gallery and elsewhere. As well as studio shows in Hampstead where he lived, also had solo exhibitions at Leicester, Walker’s and Beaux Arts Galleries, at Burgh House and at Temple Newsam, Leeds, and in 1979 at Towner Art Gallery, Eastbourne, which holds three oils and four watercolours by him. Public galleries in Carlisle, Leeds and Sheffield also hold examples. Among his ecclesiastical work were reredos at Abbotsbury, Dorset; Plumstead in southeast London; and Sleaford, Lincolnshire. Towner’s books included The Leeds Potter, 1963; Creamware, 1978; and an autobiography, Reflections, 1979.