Mike Peters, front man of Welsh rockers The Alarm and a long-standing cancer campaigner and fundraiser, has died aged 66.
His band was formed in 1981 in Rhyl, Denbighshire, out of the punk era and had a top 20 hit, Sixty Eight Guns, two years later.
It typified an anthemic style of song but their unpretentious and down-to-earth approach earned loyal followings on both sides of the Atlantic.
Peters lived with blood cancer for 30 years, following his diagnosis of lymphoma in 1995, and later having chronic lymphocytic leukaemia twice.
He was born in Prestatyn, Denbighshire, and lived in Dyserth with his wife of 39 years, Jules – who had fought her own cancer battle – and their sons Dylan, 20 and Evan, 18.
He was awarded the MBE in 2019 for his services to cancer care.
Peters – who had worked in the computer department for Kwik Save supermarket – had started the band The Toilets in Rhyl in 1977, after seeing the Sex Pistols play in Chester.
After various changes of line-up, notably the introduction of guitarist Dave Sharp, and changes of name, The Alarm played their first gig in Prestatyn in 1981.
They would go on to sell an estimated five million records and also become the first Welsh musicians since Tom Jones and Bonnie Tyler to crack America.
Thanks to a support slot with U2 on their 1983 US tour, The Alarm gained a transatlantic following – not an inconsiderable achievement.
Their debut album Declaration was released in 1984. As well as Sixty Eight Guns, it also included another favourite, Blaze of Glory.
The band had honed their live performances by extensive touring, and were also reliable "go-to" support choice for big names – which included Bob Dylan, Queen and U2 again – including an appreciative crowd at Cardiff's National Stadium in 1987.
Despite their travels, The Alarm still had strong bonds with their homeland and Peters was able to live quietly in north Wales.
The band also released a Welsh-language version of their 1989 album Change, called Newid.
Peters announced from the stage in London that he was quitting The Alarm in 1991 but continued to work with The Poets Of Justice, the line-up including his wife Jules.
In 1999, Peters worked with The Cult guitarist Billy Duffy forming a band called Coloursound.
Duffy said he felt the Welshman "inspired millions of people" during his career.
"(Music) was his lifeblood. Everything was an inspiration for him to express his feelings through music," he added.
He reformed The Alarm in 2000 and also worked as the singer for Big Country for a couple of years from 2011.
The Alarm has sold more than five million albums and had 16 UK Top 50 singles.
Television presenter, and former The Alarm roadie, Gareth Jones said Mike Peters has been the "most significant person" in his life.
He even gave him his nickname Gaz Top, which has stuck to this day.
"I would have never had a career if it wasn't for him and it's a hard day to know that he's not around anymore," he said.
Jones said that The Alarm frontman had a positive effect on "everyone" around him.
"We loved together, we drank together, we played rock 'n' roll together," he added.
"We'll always be connected."
In 2004, as a humorous stunt aimed at the music industry and its obsession with youth, Peters released a single called 45 RPM – a retro-punk song – under the pseudonym of The Poppy Fields.
He pretended his group were teenagers from Chester, who mimed along to the video for the song. It entered the top 30.
The storyline was perfect to be translated into a film, Vinyl – directed by Sara Sugarman, incidentally from Rhyl, and an Alarm fan.
Peters was first diagnosed with non-Hodgkin's lymphoma in 1995 and described his relationship with the cancer over the next two decades as like "fighting a war".
At the end of 2005, the singer was diagnosed with chronic lymphocytic leukaemia, which returned in 2015 before he went into remission.
