In the middle of the impasse Newman's health failed, and he died in November 1926 after a brief illness. Wood wrote, "I feared everything would come to a standstill, for I had never so much as engaged an extra player without having discussed it with him first". Newman's assistant, W. W. Thompson, took over as manager of the orchestra and the concerts, but at this crucial point Chappells withdrew financial support for the Proms. After lengthy negotiations, the BBC took over from Chappells in 1927 as sponsor. The Proms were saved, and the hall continued to play host to celebrity concerts throughout the rest of the 1920s and the '30s, some promoted by the BBC, and others as hitherto by a range of choral societies, impresarios and orchestras. As Chappells owned the title "New Queen's Hall Orchestra", the resident orchestra had to change its name once again and was now known as Sir Henry J. Wood's Symphony Orchestra.