Cheryl’s family ‘disgusted’ after grandparents’ gravestone overturned by council ‘for safety reasons’

The family of Girls Aloud singer Cheryl have been left “devastated” after the local council overturned her grandparents’ joint gravestone without warning due to “safety reasons”. Brian and Margaret Tweedy’s headstone is among hundreds which have been laid down at Heaton Cemetery in Newcastle amid concerns.

The Sound of the Underground hitmaker, 40, was close to her grandmother Margaret, who died in 2001 at the age of 60.

She never knew her grandfather Brian, however, who died of a heart attack aged 39 in 1980, three years before she was born.

Local residents have been up in arms after works resulted in hundreds of stones being dismantled, but Newcastle City Council claimed it had put notices in place in the cemetery prior to the work being carried out.

Cheryl’s uncle, Tony Tweedy, has opened up about the family’s feelings to the Daily Mail, saying: “We are disgusted by what’s happened. The council couldn’t have done this at a worse time, just before Christmas.

“It’s when a lot of people visit the graves of loved ones. It’s bad enough to lose your parents, but for those who have lost children, the heartache will be even worse. They will be devastated.

“The headstone was lying on its back. There was nothing wrong with it. It wasn't loose. There are graves in worse condition which haven’t been touched. None of it makes sense.”

Mr Tweedy believes the council made no attempt to contact the family ahead of the work and says they now face a bill of around £500 to repair the headstone.

At the time of publication, he said he had not discussed the incident with Cheryl, who is reforming with her Girls Aloud bandmates for a reunion tour next year, but believed she will be “upset“ as “she gets emotional about things”.

The Standard has contacted a representative for Newcastle City Council for comment.