Football club accidentally names new stand after serial killer Rose West

By Ben Rumsby

Southend United are scrambling to change the name of one of their stands after a new sponsorship deal saw it rebranded to feature the identity of one of Britain's worst serial killers.

The Gilbert & Rose West Stand found itself the target of both concern and mockery after the National League club signed a commercial partnership with a local estate agent.

The juxtaposition of Gilbert & Rose with West Stand saw the words 'Rose' and 'West' appear next to each other on season ticket cards and Southend's own website.

The issue was raised at a meeting between fans and the club's leadership this week but there were initially no plans to address it due to the potential costs involved.

However, Telegraph Sport has been told Southend are now looking to formally change the stand's name to the likes of the Gilbert & Rose Stand, G&R West Stand or the West Stand sponsored by Gilbert & Rose.

Advertising boards around the club's Roots Hall ground, which simply read Gilbert & Rose, will be unaffected.

A Southend spokesman said: "We are grateful for Gilbert & Rose's sponsorship for the coming season and we look forward to working with them in a number of areas, including community projects."

The couple were arrested and charged after human remains were found at their home in Gloucester in the mid-1990s.

West, whose husband committed suicide in prison while awaiting trial, went on to become only the second woman in the UK in modern times after Myra Hindley to be handed a whole-life tariff.

One Southend fan, Paul Napper, posted on Twitter: "Only Southend United could have a sponsor for the West Stand called Gilbert & Rose, inevitably leading to the Gilbert & Rose West Stand."