Jackie Toaduff: Tributes paid to beloved entertainer who owned Chantry Hotel in Dronfield

Jackie died on Sunday, aged 89, following a short illness. The hotel on Church Street broke the sad news on Tuesday, March 7, posting on Facebook: “This is the hardest message I will ever have to post. To inform everyone of the passing of my best friend and the best person I have ever known. Jackie Toaduff owner of the Chantry Hotel passed away on Sunday after a short illness. I know he will be missed by so many people, and was loved by so many people. My heart is broken and I will always have you with me in my heart.”

Jackie, who has been described as the ‘real life Billy Elliott’, was the son of a coal miner and worked down the pits before achieving fame as one half of the double act Roy and Jackie Toaduff, with the late Roland Roy (later Roland Toaduff), a former tailor from Fir Vale, Sheffield.

Jackie’s showbiz friends ranged from dancer Ginger Rodgers and ballerina Margot Fonteyn to acting great Kirk Douglas and the first man on the moon, Neil Armstrong, as well as the legendary Sheffield entertainer Bobby Knutt, and he wrote about his rise to stardom in his memoirs Coaldust to Stardust.

Roland and Jackie teamed up with their manager Colin Edwardes to buy the Chantry Hotel in 1967 and a number of stars have stayed at the hotel over the years, including George Best and Michael Caine.

‘The entertainers are together again’

Social media has been flooded with tributes. Gary Sinclair wrote: “May God bless this wonderful man. Thank you for the memories you created in The Chantry. Reunited with Colin, Roy, Bobby, Terry & Stuart. The Entertainers are all together again.” Another commented: “So, so sorry to hear this. He was a lovely man. He used to help me with Roy when I used to be pot washer before I did waitressing many years ago.”

A third person said: “So sad to hear this news. I used to love coming to the Chantry with my grandparents when I was a little girl. You used to all make such a fuss of me. Memories I will cherish.” Another wrote: “He was family to me and mine. We loved him so much for his humour, kindness, and the huge support he gave to me throughout the years. Michael, and the girls, you must take our love and sad wishes from our hearts to yours.”

Others described him as a ‘gentleman’, ‘one great guy’, and a ‘wonderful man’, who had an ‘amazing life’ and who numerous people said always made them feel welcome. One person added: “He's now with Uncle Roy and they can continue to sing and dance together… We'll miss him singing on Thursdays. He always entertained us and made us laugh… Things won't be the same now but we'll carry on as Jackie would have wanted... Lovely man, lovely memories.” Another person perhaps summed it up best, writing: “There’ll never be another Jackie. He was a unique one-off.”

The amazing story of how Jackie Toaduff’s lucky break and how he bought the Chantry Hotel

Mike Elrick, who runs the Chantry Hotel and has known Jackie for more than 40 years, said: “He was very loved. He was such a friendly, warm and loving person, and he will be missed by so many people.”

Mike described how Jackie grew up in County Durham and worked as a miner from the age of 14. He was visiting Blackpool with some workmates when they ran out of spending money and his friends persuaded him to enter a talent contest, which he won, earning £30 – a not insignificant sum in those days. The hotel at which they were staying was so impressed they asked Jackie to perform again and that second performance was watched by Frank Swift, the former England goalkeeper, who signed him up for a variety show, which is where Jackie would meet his future stage partner Roy and their manager Colin.

Jackie and Roy enjoyed great success travelling the globe and entertaining the troops. They were ready to retire from showbusiness in the late 60s and invest in a hotel, explained Mike, as the rise of bands like the Beatles had changed the world of entertainment so radically. But the duo were asked to perform on the Queen Elizabeth 2 cruise ship for two weeks and after becoming the first act to achieve a standing ovation in the room where they performed, bosses begged them to extend their stay and they ended up travelling the oceans on the QE2 for another two decades, leaving their manager to run the hotel.

Mike explained how Jackie loved to tell the story of how he and his colleagues came to buy the Chantry Hotel. He said that Jackie and co had been planning to buy a different hotel in Spinkhill but when that sale fell through he received a call out of the blue from a psychic, who told him the Chantry was ‘crying out for you’.

He and a friend agreed to check it out but couldn’t find it at first and were ready to give up when they stopped for a drink at the Green Dragon pub, which happened to be next door. The landlady there said she would love to have them as neighbours so they decided to take a look that evening. It had been empty for 18 months and was covered with cobwebs inside but when Jackie tried the door it was open and when he flicked the switch the lights came on.

They called the estate agent the next day to arrange a proper viewing but the estate agent was confused how they had got in and, sure enough, when they turned up the next day the door was locked and the electricity supply had been switched off.