Houseman was killed along with his wife and two friends in a car crash on the A40 near Oxford in March 1977 whilst driving home from a fund-raising charity event.
The accident occurred when a speeding driver, 22-year-old Bartholomew Smith, the son of Tory MP John Smith, veered into Houseman's vehicle, travelling in the opposite direction.
Smith was subsequently tried and sentenced to a £4,000 fine plus having his driving licence revoked for ten years.
An expert witness at the trial claimed that Smith had been driving at "maniacal" speed and was "considerably intoxicated", allegedly after a Bullingdon Club dinner.
A testimonial match between the 1970 and 1977 Chelsea teams was arranged to raise money for the Housemans' orphaned children, with a crowd of almost 17,000 in attendance. The footballer was a hero in the village of Oakley in Hampshire, where he had set up and coached a youth football team. There is now a youth league named after him in the area.
In 2018 Bartholomew Smith was awarded an OBE for services to charity.
