He also was conductor of the Salisbury Medical and Orchestral Societies, and was joint conductor of the annual Southern Cathedrals Festival (a collaboration between the Salisbury, Chichester, and Winchester cathedrals).
[2] Whilst organist at St Paul's he would greatly amuse the choristers by turning up for choir practice in his plus fours which he would also wear whilst cycling around the City of London early in the mornings doing a (presumably one of his children's) paper round.
In 1963 he headed the faculty for the Wa-Li-Ro Choir School in Put-in-Bay, Ohio, along with Leo Sowerby and Paul Beymer.
[3] On his retirement from St Paul's Cathedral, he was appointed LVO in the 1990 Queen's Birthday Honours list.
Dearnley was also president of the Incorporated Association of Organists (IAO), 1968–1971, and chairman of the Friends of Cathedral Music, 1971–1989.