Guinness wreath & gold coffin at Traveller funeral of ‘Big Daddy’
‘A CAN OF BEER WAS THE BEST CURE FOR JIM’
A GOLDEN coffin, wreaths shaped like cigarettes and a pint of Guinness featured as Travellers said goodbye to Jim ‘Big Daddy’ Coffey this week.
The leading figure in his community died on March 21 following a cancer diagnosis that had tragically spread to his brain.
Jim was honoured in Cardiff, Wales, with a giant golden coffin, floral homages reflecting his passions, including a replica pack of fags, a frothy pint of his cherished Guinness and John Smith’s, and a line of cars with Irish flags.
The memorials were presented at Western Cemetery in Ely, drawing such a crowd that South Wales Police prepped the public for potential travel disruptions throughout the city on Monday.
Among the floral offerings was a poignant depiction of a stairway to heaven, featuring Jim amidst the clouds alongside his late wife Agnes and their daughter Helen, who died in 2006.
Jim, who had 23 grandchildren, was born in Birmingham but spent a significant part of his childhood travelling before his family established roots at Leckwith
Common in Cardiff.
Statues
He found a permanent home on a yard at Wentloog Road, with his prefab-style home, nicknamed “the chalet”, adorned with lion statues.
Jim’s daughter Bridget said: “My father was the sort of man who wouldn’t let anything drag him down. If he had pain he wouldn’t go to the doctor. He would say the best cure is a can of John Smith’s or a can of Guinness.
“Every night after work he would sit at his table, smoke his cigarette a n d drink ten cans of John Smith’s. At midnight he’d have his dinner that Agnes made him. Then he’d be up bright and early to leave for work at 7am.”
He passed away on March 21, over 14 months after he received his terminal cancer diagnosis. Remarkably, he was still working two weeks before his death, and enjoying Guinness, Baileys and cards with his family just two days prior.