"Everyone is gutted" - tributes pour in for Sheffield 'legend' known as Disco Dave

David Frost, more commonly known as Disco Dave, died on September 20 at the age of 62 after many years’ service to the community in Woodseats and beyond.

Disco Dave grew up in Woodseats, attending Abbey Lane Primary School as a child.

He has since spent over 15 years since 2004 entertaining pupils past and present at the biannual school discos at Abbey Lane.

Olympic skier from Sheffield joins South Yorkshire Police to fulfil dreams in city she 'loves'

Nikki Bullett, who ran many of the school’s discos over the past few years, said: "He was just a legend. He was always wearing a white T-shirt, white shorts and a white baseball cap.

"He absolutely loved Abbey Lane School because he went there as a kid, so I have just known him forever as a mum at the school and he just had time for everybody.”

His death, which came after a short battle with cancer, came as a shock to Nikki, who was preparing to plan future discos for the school.

She admits, however, that doing the disco without Dave ‘won’t be the same’.

Watch the test flight of 'awesome' jet suits that could be the future of Peak District mountain rescue

Nikki said: "I didn’t even know he was poorly but when I last saw him, before lockdown in March I did say to him, ‘I don’t think you are looking after yourself’, because he had lost a lot of weight and he was telling me about his worries, and who he looks after – other people’s problems.

“I would have just been about to contact him with a couple of dates for the year, but I found out that he had died.”

Even after many years running the school disco together, however, Nikki still didn’t know what Disco Dave’s real name actually was.

"I didn’t know even he had a surname!

“I have never called him anything other than Disco Dave. No one would ever just say, ‘Dave’, you wouldn’t know who they were talking about.”

It wasn’t only this disco persona, however, that made him a recognisable face in the Woodseats area – he was known for his ‘caring’ nature and love of other people.

Nikki added: “He looked after people and elderly neighbours.

"He loved to chat, he just wanted to help anybody and everybody, and I know he was involved in caring and looking after people, he just wanted to make sure that the kids were having a lovely time.

“He was just such a character, so deliberate with how he spoke. He always checked in with my kids, he was always asking about them, and how they were getting on, he was just a lovely human – everyone at the school is gutted.”

Jemma Taylor, chair of Abbey Lane School governors, said: “Dave was a very active member of our Woodseats and St Chad’s Church community along with his school 'family' as he called us.

"He was a very caring man who put others first and was always up for a party as long as he was providing the music.

"Dave was a good family friend and will be greatly missed.”

As well as running entertainment events, such as discos and karaoke sessions, Disco Dave DJ’d on local radio, taking up slots on Hallam FM and BBC Radio Sheffield over the years.

Rev Toby Hole, of St Chad's in Woodseats, the church Disco Dave grew up attending, said: “He grew up coming to this church – in the 70s and 80s he was here a lot. I believe that he was a youth worker here, and know that he was involved in the local drama society that the church ran.”

More recently Dave would organise events at The Big Tree pub for Christmas, DJ events and karaoke.

Rev Hole added: "He was incredibly caring towards some of the elderly in the congregation.

"He always came across as somebody who, despite having a personality you would associate with discos and all the DJ stuff, he was incredibly caring, and particularly for the ones in the church he knew as a youngster.”

Disco Dave’s funeral will take place at 2.30pm on Tuesday, October 6 at Hutcliffe Wood Crematorium.

Donations via T W Birks & Son Funeral Directors, Deepcar are for St Luke's Hospice.