Former Villa chairman Ellis dies

FILE PHOTO: Aston Villa's Chairman Doug Ellis watches during a friendly soccer match against Wolverhampton Wanderers at Molineux in Wolverhampton, Britain, July 29, 2006. REUTERS/Darren Staples/File photo

MANCHESTER, England (Reuters) - Former Aston Villa chairman Doug Ellis has died at the age of 94, the English Championship club said on Thursday.

Ellis was chairman of Villa in two separate spells from 1968-75 and from 1982-2006.

A businessman who made his fortune in the travel industry, Ellis was nicknamed "Deadly Doug" due to his reputation for being quick to dismiss failing managers.

FILE PHOTO: Aston Villa's new manager Martin O'Neill (R) and chairman Doug Ellis pose for photographs with an Aston Villa shirt at Villa Park in Birmingham, central England August 4, 2006. REUTERS/Darren Staples/File Photo

Ellis served on a number of Football Association and FIFA committees and sold Villa to American businessman Randy Lerner in 2006 but he kept his connection with the club as life president.

He was awarded the OBE in 2005 and a Knighthood in 2012.

FILE PHOTO: Football Soccer - Aston Villa v Tottenham Hotspur - Barclays Premier League - Villa Park - 13/3/16 Former Aston Villa chairman Doug Ellis. Action Images via Reuters / John Sibley / File photo Livepic

(Reporting by Simon Evans, editing by Ed Osmond)