Beloved family man Terry Collins laid to rest next to brother Willy at spectacular Sheffield grave
Family and friends said their final goodbyes to a beloved Sheffield man, laid to rest next to the brother he adored.
Terry Collins was just 52-years-old when he tragically passed away on September 25, 2024, just four years on from the shock death of his brother Willy, from whom he was said to be ‘inseparable’.
Following a service at St Theresa’s Roman Catholic church on the Manor estate, Terry’s platinum casket - adorned with red and white flowers - arrived at Shiregreen Cemetery this afternoon, trailed by a funeral cortege led by 15 horses, sporting red plumes.
A fleet of 15 luxurious Rolls Royce vehicles also featured in the procession, matching the silver Rolls Royce hearse carrying Terry’s casket, in which he made his final journey to the cemetery, before being moved into a carriage to be taken to his graveside.
As mourners gathered around at the Collins family burial plot, an electronic display board shone bright with pictures of Terry throughout his life, along with poems and family tributes.
One such tribute read: “Our loving husband, father and big daddy. ‘Till we all meet again, sleep peacefully.”
Some of Terry’s favourite songs were also played, including This World is Not My Home, I’ll Be Missing You and Hero.
In a lavish tribute to Terry, a plane flew across his final resting place, creating the shape of a heart in one manoeuvre.
His platinum coffin was lowered into the ground by heartbroken family members, placing him next to his brother Willy.
Terry, who was born into a large Sheffield traveller family, leaves behind wife Kathleen and his four sons Martin, Terry, Tom, and Paddy Joe.
In a family tribute provided to The Star, Terry was described as a ‘loveable rogue’ and a ‘very good husband and father and grandfather’ by those closest to him.
“He will be deeply missed by everyone. Terry always helped everyone and anyone,” Terry’s family have said.
In March 2022, a 37-ton memorial to Willy, said to be crafted using solid Carrara marble from Italy and reputedly costing £200,000, was unveiled at Shiregreen Cemetery.
It features two life-size statues of the boxer, four flagpoles, depictions of biblical scenes and a solar-power jukebox playing his favourite songs, and it is lit up in LED lights which change colour.
The massive memorial has divided opinion ever since, with some people admiring the spectacle and others branding it an eyesore.
Sheffield Council claimed shortly after it was unveiled that the memorial’s size breached the guidelines for graves in the city. The Collins family have always insisted permission was granted for the grave but the council disagrees. The family have warned that there would be ‘war’ if the memorial is damaged or taken down by the council.
The council said last year that it was ‘still trying to achieve an agreed position with the Collins family over the future of the memorial’. Asked again this week about the memorial, the council said there were ‘no further updates at this time’.