Tributes to well-known Nelson butcher Allan Gradwell

Mr Allan Heyworth Gradwell had his own stall, Gradwell's Quality Butchers, on Nelson Market for around half a century, during which time he became a well-known figure in the town.

A keen snooker player and golfer, Mr Gradwell inherited his love of sport from his father Billy who was a professional footballer and cricketer, who played for Blackpool and Nelson at football, and for Burnley and Brechin in Scotland at cricket.

Married to the late Audrey, the couple had three children, Stuart, Lorraine and the late Susan, who died in 2018 while on hoiliday at a hotel in Egypt.

Stuart, himself a butcher at Clitheroe Market, said: "Dad was very well-known and very popular. He was a typical butcher, very friendly with a great sense of humour. He was always laughing and joking.

"Dad played snooker at the Nelson Brass Band Club and golf at Nelson. He lived all his life in Nelson apart from a few years while he was a child when his father was playing cricket in Scotland.

"He retired when he was 65 but carried on helping me out on my stall. He also enjoyed dancing in retirement with mum."

Lorraine added that her father was left "heartbroken" when Susan and her husband died in tragic circumstances on holiday, a story which made national headlines. The tragedy came three years after Allan had lost his beloved wife.

She said: "Everyone made it through as a family and stuck together."

Allan also leaves grandchildren Kelly, Jamie, Chris, Marc, Michael and Emma, as well as 14 great-grandchildren.

His funeral will be held on Monday, March 30th at Burnley Crematorium for close family only. A wake will be planned in the near future for further people to attend, once the coronavirus outbreak has settled down.