KEN KINGTributes were paid to "talented artist and true showman" Ken King, who died on 22 February, 2010, after being diagnosed with pancreatic cancer. He was aged 67 and from Grimsby.
The father of seven had also suffered from chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) for almost 12 years.
Mr King was once a prominent figure on the Grimsby local music scene. As lead singer of Kenny King And The Breakaways, which was formed in the 1960s, he performed in local pubs and clubs for many years and even had the pleasure of singing with Lulu at the old Gaiety dance hall.
The band travelled to gigs in Barrow and Barton too, and his family say he a "well-known local man".
Wife Bev, described Ken as a "real gentleman" who "never said a bad word about anybody."
She said: "He will be truly missed by everyone who knew him and since he passed away the phone hasn't stopped ringing.
"Throughout the years he suffered with COPD and when he was diagnosed with cancer, only a week before he died, I never heard him complain once.
"He was incredibly brave."
Over the years, Mr King had a number of jobs, as well as painting and selling hundreds of works of art.
After attending Elliston Street School, where he was head boy as a child, he went on to become a trawlerman, had a spell in the Merchant Navy, worked at Hewitt's Brewery, and even spent time working for the education authority in Lincoln.
At 42, he went back into education himself and completed a degree in English Literature at Hull University, after which he continued with his writing, had his poetry published and even became a technician at the former Grimsby Art College.
Bev said: "He did a lot in his lifetime and was even a talented sportsman in his younger days.
"Ken really was a fantastic singer and had a great voice for ballads; the band also did quite a few charity events."
He was survived by his wife, Bev, children Philip, Darren, Jamie, Joni, Jonathan, Becky and Roisin, siblings Phil, John, and Lorraine, who said he was a "fantastic brother", and his parents, Ken and Esther.
Roisin said her dad taught her to appreciate things and passed on his artistic ability. "He shared my passion for literature and all of my friends growing up thought he was great. A lot of them will be coming to the funeral," she said.
Becky added: "He always stuck up for me no matter what."
Friend and former band member of the Breakaways John Smith, of Grimsby, said Mr King enjoyed listening to Roy Orbison, and the cover group performed a number of songs by the likes of Elvis and other icons of that era.
He said: "We just loved performing together and getting out there, back then it was all about meeting the women."
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