Chris Callander was described as someone who “always had a huge smile on his face”
09:35, 10 Jan 2026Updated 11:28, 10 Jan 2026
Chris Callander(Image: Supplied)
Tributes have been paid to a “gentle and lovely” man who died unexpectedly. Chris Callander, 55, from Higher Bebington, was a popular figure in the city’s music scene through groups such as Liverpool Acoustic and The Monday Club at The Cavern Pub.
As well as his musical talent, he also worked for Afta Thought, which trains people in education and training in various scenarios using scripted scenes. Chris’s sister, Anne Sheridan, from Prenton, said Chris died “peacefully at his home” on New Year’s Day. The news has been a massive shock for his family and friends.
Paying tribute, Anne said: “Chris loved music and loved writing. He taught himself the guitar and piano. He was intelligent, gentle and a great listener. He always had time for everyone. He loved his family and friends. He was a great brother and uncle.
“He loved Liverpool Acoustic and adored the people he met through that. He loved travelling. He was planning to go off skiing shortly.”
Chris was a well-known face at the Monday Club. The open-mic night has taken place weekly at The Cavern Pub, which is located directly opposite the world-famous Cavern Club on Mathew Street.
The Monday Club has ran for the last 15 years and gives grassroots musicians in Merseyside a chance to perform their original songs. The club is hosted by Ellesmere Port-born musician Ian Prowse, who has forged a successful music career on Merseyside and beyond.
Ian told the ECHO that Chris was a crucial part in making the club a success after Ian was given six weeks to see if a music event with no cover songs would work.
Ian said: “On opening night, in walks this fella called Chris Callander. Chris got up and played his own songs. A few other people showed up that night and we realised that it was going to work.
Chris was a popular figure in the city’s music scene(Image: Supplied)
“From that moment on, he came a few times a year and was almost like one of the founding fathers of the place. He always had a huge smile on his face and just joined in with the ethos of the club, so I was always very thankful to him.”
On his musical ability, Ian added: “He was great. He could play fast or slow or anything like that. He had his own really distinctive type of singing and song writing. There was nobody else that sounded like him at the club.”
Ian said Chris’s death came as a complete shock. A special Monday club was dedicated to Chris and hundreds of messages have been posted online after his death was announced.
Ian said: ”We were all just kind of shocked. Then we decided to dedicate last Monday’s club to him and gave him our own little send off. It’s so sad, God bless him.
“If you go online, there’s nothing but people saying what a lovely fellow he was and I can testify to that. I was just happy that we could do our little tribute to him because he had a whole life outside of that with family and friends and everything.”
A fundraising page has been set-up, with any money donated going toward Harmony Liverpool Philharmonic, a community initiative by the Royal Liverpool Philharmonic Orchestra that provides free orchestral music education to children and families in north Liverpool.
Anne said Harmony’s aims fitted with Chris’s experiences. She said: “Chris had been part of a youth theatre on the Wirral when he was young. That’s where he made great friends and learned to act on stage. It was really brilliant.”