Willy Collins: Controversial giant gravestone for 'King of Sheffield' remains in place

The 37-ton installation, made from Italian marble, and believed to have cost tens of thousands, was unveiled in Shiregreen Cemetery in March.

It marks the resting place of 49-year-old Willy Collins, known to many as ‘Big Willy’ Collins, who died in July 2020 after collapsing during a holiday with his family in Port de Pollença in Majorca.

MORE: Willy Collins memorial: Widow says there will be 'war' if headstone in Sheffield is damaged or pulled down

The dad-of-nine’s headstone became something of a new city landmark when it was unveiled, attracting a steady stream of visitors.

MORE: Willy Collins Sheffield: Controversial headstone becomes lunchtime attraction to residents who 'had to see it'

It features two life-sized statues of the bare-knuckle boxer’s six-foot-two frame, four flagpoles, depictions of Jesus Christ and biblical scenes.

It also has a solar-powered jukebox playing the patriarch’s favourite tracks.

The monument is lit up in LED lights that change colour and is under 24-hour CCTV monitoring.

At the time of the unveiling, Willy’s eldest daughter, Mary Collins, said: “It’s a sad day but it’s also a way to show the world what he meant to us.

“Our father was a family man and he means the world to us – he still means the world to us. We’ve given him everything we’ve got and he deserves it.”

One of 16 children, Willy, who was originally from a traveller family in Ireland and moved to Sheffield as a child, was the patriarch of the Collins family and had around 400 nieces and nephews.

Sheffield Council said all plans for grave memorials should be submitted to the council and receive approval from Bereavement Services before they are erected.

The council also has strict size guidelines.

It claims the plans submitted and approved ‘differ from the memorial in place’.

The council says it has ‘reached out to the family’ and intends to ‘discuss changes which need to be made in order to satisfy the cemetery rules and take into consideration other cemetery users’.

Willy’s widow, Kathleen Collins, told the Daily Mail there would be ‘war’ if the memorial was damaged or taken down.

“It's going to cause very, very bad riots if they take my husband's headstone down. I am warning the public and the council, don't touch the beautiful monument we have put up to remember my darling Willy,” she said.