Family honours the memory of Chesterfield punk scene legend Stephen 'Bernie' Quinn with request for amusing anecdotes

Stephen Bernard Quinn, who lived in Newbold, passed away in Chesterfield Royal Hospital after being diagnosed with pneumonia.

A self-taught guitarist, Stephen was a founding member of The Chaos Brothers and Criminal Sex who enjoyed a lively following in the Seventies and Eighties. Mark Adams, of The Chaos Brothers, said: “Stephen was at times hilarious but also quite deep.”

Neil Anderson, founder of The Dirty Stop Outs retro books, said Stephen was a gifted musician. “Whilst most local punk guitarists of his generation got by on one power chord he was in a league of his own. His wit, wisdom and ability to entertain will be sadly missed.”

Stephen’s brother David, 52, said: “We’re taking so much comfort from the number of nice comments that we’ve received from the people who knew him.

“He was a really good guitarist who loved his music; a Beatles fan who had a lot of records and books. He was keen on Egyptology and taught himself to write using hieroglyphics. A big nature lover, he knew the Latin name for every wildflower in the UK. He was also an authority on the aircraft of Second World War.

"Stephen was kind and generous. He liked making other people laugh through his antics.”

That sense of humour will be honoured at Stephen’s funeral on Thursday, January 26, at 3.50pm in Brimington Crematorium. David said: “We want it to be a celebration of the spirit that he was - he was fun-loving and irreverent and he didn't take life too seriously. To give him a send-off where people are smiling or laughing through the tears is exactly what he would want.”

David, who lives in Dubai, has requested that amusing anecdotes of Stephen be emailed to: [email protected]

Stephen leaves his dad Bernie, sisters Michele and Tracy, brother David, sister-in-law, niece and nephew. The eldest son of legendary comedian and singer Bernie Clifton, Stephen’s middle name, Bernard, often gave rise to his friends calling him Bernie.

Jessica Popplewell-Barker said: “I met Stephen around 1993 in the Anchor pub and he just made me laugh so much. We all used to say he was funnier than his dad making daft songs up.”

Stephen, who was retired, spent many years working as an electrician and had spells in the retail and construction industries.

Donations in his memory can be made to the animal welfare organisation Save Me Trust or via the funeral directors B Hattersley & Sons Ltd.