Keith Hewson

I’ve just come back from a funeral in Newtown and even though I don’t usually write posts about funerals, this particular funeral is well worth a mention. As you will have guessed from the article title, the funeral concerned was for Keith Hewson.

Keith Hewson – A Tribute To A Top Bloke

Keith Hewson was 74 when he sadly passed away on 25th July. And what a 74 years Keith had for us to reflect on. This post is not just to announce his sad passing but it is a tribute. A tribute to a top bloke as it happens.

My particular connection is two-fold. Firstly, Keith’s wife, Frances, is my sister’s – Christine – best friend. So, initially I knew Keith as a result of my sister’s connection.

But, in addition to that, I got to know Keith in my own right. So, much of this post is a recollection of my own interactions with a genuinely popular, nice guy. That may sound like a cliche. But it’s not. It’s a fact.

Keith Hewson – A Brief Background

Before I relate my own snippets of Keith, a brief background of his life. Keith was born in Chester 74 years ago and has been married to Frances for 49 years. Next month, September, will be their Golden Wedding anniversary. They have two children – son, David and daughter Julie.

For much of his working life, Keith worked at Van Leer in Ellesmere Port. In fact he worked there for 31 years. A hard grafter by all accounts who had put the hours in when needed. He was also a keen motor-bike enthusiast and really loved his motor bikes.

A sports fan as well who followed football closely. He was a keen Liverpool fan but also followed the fortunes of Chester FC. I know Keith got great enjoyment when Liverpool lifted the Champions League in June. Something for Keith to chat to Bill Shankly and Bob Paisley about before tonight’s game against Norwich.

But as much as he loved football, this took a back seat to his main passion. Karaoke.

Now this is where I can relate my own experiences of how I got to know Keith myself. Having already sort of known of him through my sister, I began to bump into Keith in and around the pubs of Chester.

Not just any pubs though by the way. More specifically – karaoke pubs. Yes, Keith loved his karaoke. Like many others, if I go out and I find myself in a pub with karaoke, I will sometimes have a go.

But with Keith it was a case of karaoke first and, in a way, “while I’m here I may as well have a drink”. Yes, Keith liked a pint, but the main reason for him to be in a particular pub was so he could take his turn and entertain the pub goers with his singing. And entertain he certainly did.

Keith, The King and Billy

Keith was a passionate fan of both “The King”, Elvis Presley, and Billy Fury. His karaoke song selection reflected that. One of his expertly delivered Billy Fury numbers was “I’d Never Find Another You”. As a tribute, Keith’s own rendition of this classic was played at today’s funeral. I haven’t got Keith’s version but I’ll ask for a copy so I can add the audio in this post at a later date. In the meantime however, here’s Billy’s own offering…..

As my brother-in-law, Andy, mentioned in his expertly delivered eulogy, Keith is now probably ‘up there’ giving The King and Billy singing lessons.

Keith’s favourite karaoke pubs were The Oddfellows (The Oddies) in Frodsham Street and The Stanley in Brook Street. Quite often Keith would greet me in The Oddies with a leading question of, “have you got one in?”. For blokes in a pub that would generally mean, have you got a pint in. Not so, when Keith asked you. He meant, had I put a song request in. As I said, karaoke first, beer second!!

Invariably if we bumped into each other on a Saturday we would also have a chat (or a moan!!) about footie. If Chester were mentioned I reckon I’ve never heard the word “rubbish” used so many times in one conversation!!! NB: Only kidding any Chester fans reading. Keith was, more often than not, a glass half full character when we spoke about footie.

If our paths crossed on a Friday however, I would ask him, “any luck Keith?” Typically the answer was an emphatic “No”, but on occasions I did get a thumbs up accompanied by a wide grin. Yes, Keith did love his Bingo as well. He went most Friday’s with his pal, Albert.

Heart Of Gold

As I’ve mentioned I initially sort of knew Keith through my sister but I then also got to know him myself in my own right. I think we all know quite quickly when we meet someone whether they are a “good ‘un” or not.

I can honestly say, I felt this with Keith from the off. There was no such scenario of feeling obliged to speak to him because he was a friend of my sister. No such situation. We hit it off from the word ‘go’ and shared a lot in common.

Quite often we listened to each other’s songs after we both “got one in”.

Keith also genuinely cared about people as well. During spells of some of my health ‘wobbles’ Keith was always one of the first to ask about my welfare in more than a passing way.

In fact a few weeks after my hip replacement operation about seven years ago and while recovering at home, there was an unexpected knock at the door. After the short limp to the front door, I opened it to find Keith standing there ready to come in and chat about everything and anything.

That off the cuff visit really touched me. If he was merely going through the motions in enquiring about my welfare, he could have asked Frances to ask my sister. But no, he was genuinely interested. And genuinely concerned. Yes, a really top bloke.

Karaoke in The Oddies and The Stanley won’t be the same without Keith. Of that there is no doubt. He was such a well known character in the karaoke pubs. In fact, I called into The Stanley a couple of days after Keith’s passing to let them know that Keith had joined the “Karaoke Club Upstairs”. I was half way through mentioning it, when the young man on the karaoke cut me short and said, “do you mean Billy Fury? Yes, we’ve heard”

Indeed, there in itself is an indication as to his popularity. Yes, Keith Hewson, you will be sorely missed. Thanks for the memories.

The Oddie’s and The Stanley’s loss is The King’s and Billy Fury’s gain.

Chester Lifestyle

I hope you enjoy my Chester Lifestyle website and love our beautiful city as much as I do. If you’re not too familiar about Chester, or my website, you can find out more HERE.

Things To Do In Chester

Well, I’ve already mentioned a couple of places you can sing on Karaoke. The Stanley on a Saturday night and The Oddies, also on a Saturday night, and on a Sunday afternoon. But Chester also has so much more to offer. For some ideas, have a look HERE.

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