A mainstay of the Bermuda Musical and Dramatic Society known for his love of song was also a major importer of the island’s souvenirs for tourists.

Terry Draycott, a keen player with the Renegades rugby team, ran the family wholesale business, Draycotts of Bermuda, all through the peak decades of Bermuda tourism.

Founded by his mother, Jessie May, it was run single-handedly by Mr Draycott, who took frequent overseas trips to source the knick-knacks and trinkets stocked by businesses catering to visitors.

Mr Draycott and his wife, Mary, a schoolteacher at Saltus Cavendish primary school, were also heavily involved as volunteers with the Bermuda Aquarium, Museum and Zoo.

He was a pillar of the BMDS, where records show his earliest involvement in plays going back to 1965.

Mr Draycott joined the society’s choir when it formed in 1977 and enthusiastically took part for the next 40 years.

Adrian Lee-Emery, a friend and former president of the BMDS, met Mr Draycott through the theatre when he arrived in Bermuda in 1971, forming a lifelong bond.

He said: “He was just one of the world’s really nice people — always friendly, always with a smile.

“He would talk to everybody, and he was great at remembering who people were. I’m really, really pleased that I got to know him.”

Mr Lee-Emery said his primary involvement with the BMDS was through singing.

Mr Draycott sang bass, while his wife sang alto.

“BMDS has had various iterations of groups of singers over the years, and Terry was involved with that for a long, long time,” Mr Lee-Emery said.

“He would probably deny that he did acting too, but he did — not in major roles.”

Mr Lee-Emery and Mr Draycott played together on the Renegades, where his singing was enjoyed by team-mates.

Much of his involvement with BMDS shows happened behind the scenes, Mr Lee-Emery said.

“Terry was involved in almost all elements of backstage. He did set construction, and worked on lighting and painting.”

At the City Hall Theatre, Mr Draycott was part of the team with the arduous task of hoisting and lowering scenery in the days before counterweights were installed in the early 1980s.

Mr Lee-Emery recalled: “It was incredibly hard work. It was as difficult letting it down as it was taking it up. It was done by a very select little group.”

At the BMDS’s Daylesford Theatre, Mr Draycott’s roles ranged from house manager to working the bar.

“He was a huge supporter,” Mr Lee-Emery said. “He attended virtually every single event.

“If he wasn’t working on it in the early days, in the latter days he would be there for nearly everything.”

The Draycotts were particularly keen on the Famous for 15 Minutes festival of short plays, which raises funds for bursaries to send Bermudian students overseas to study theatre and the arts.

Mr Draycott, who moved to Britain just after the latest Famous for 15 Minutes, is survived by his wife and their two children, Catherine and Simon, as well as granddaughters Holly and Rosie.

• Terrence John Draycott, a devoted member of the Bermuda Musical and Dramatic Society, was born on January 15, 1946. He died in May 2024, aged 78