Channel 5 star dad who had 26 kids with 15 women & scrounged £1million in benefits dies aged 75 as daughter pays tribute

A JOBLESS dad who had 14 daughters and 12 sons with 15 different women and said to be “Britain’s most feckless dad” has died. Peter Rolfe, 75, hit headlines in 2015 when it was revealed he had sired 26 children and was claiming £50,000-a-year and living in a £300k council house. Over his lifetime he is thought to have been paid around £1m in benefits. The one-eyed former doorman from the Isle of Wight, branded “Britain’s most feckless dad”, had been battling a long t-erm illness before his death this week. Sign up for The Sun newsletter Thank you! His daughter Leeanne led tributes to her “true hero”. She said: “You were the most amazing dad in the world. “My heart is broken. Please be happy and pain-free now. “I love you forever Dad, I miss you so much.” Daughter Zoe Gaze also paid her respects to the “most present grandparent.” She wrote: “Peter Rolfe was an absolute legend. A man with the biggest, most open heart ever. Most read in The Sun “He put on the best spreads for the kids with food that will never be matched. A man who would open his door to anyone and share whatever he had. “The hole he’s going to leave the world and especially Newport is unmeasurable.” The former criminal – who had been convicted for possessing drugs, handling stolen goods and having live ammo at home – accrued a shocking 37 court appearances. Rolfe, who lost touch with some of his children, was housed in a £300k five-bedroom house in Newport where he lived with seven of his children and two grandchildren. He fathered his impressive brood with up to 15 different partners and once joked that it was “difficult to keep track when you’ve had 26 kids with so many different women.” He appeared on ITV’s This Morning and Channel 5’s Benefits Britain: Life on the Dole, saying at the time: “I am not living in a mansion. “People think I live a life of luxury but I don’t. I don’t drink or take drugs or go out. “I do what I can to keep my children happy. It is hard. By the time I have spent my money on gas, electric and food shopping, I end up with about £20 a week spare.” Late Reform UK spokeswoman and former Tory minister Ann Widdecombe branded him “Britain’s most feckless father” and said that he didn’t deserve a tent, let alone a council house. One Newport local, Lauren Solman, added: “Pete was always so welcoming with us when we were younger. “He was such a character but had the biggest heart.” Another wrote: “Thinking of you all in his non-stop growing family.” In 2005 when he was caught with amphetamines in his freezer, cannabis in his kitchen and stolen M&S goods, a judge told him he had “an utterly dismal history of which you should be ashamed”. But he was given just an 18-month community order for the offence and consistently managed to dodge jail because of his responsibilities to his children. He was also charged with bigamy and perjury over his 1997 wedding to Claire Drake, but the CPS dropped the case at court due to “insufficient evidence”. Fifth wife Claire said in 2015: “I left him 13 years ago. I had to get away. He’s just evil.” Rolfe said he could not remember whether he had been married “three or four times”, but it is believed to be six. Do you have a story for The Sun? Call us on 0207 782 4104, email exclusive@the-sun.co.uk or text/whatsapp 07423 720 250 Comment now