David Thomas Jones (30 December 1945 – 29 February 2012) was an English singer-songwriter, musician, actor and businessman best known as a member of the band The Monkees, and for starring in the TV series of the same name. His acting credits include a Tony-nominated role as the Artful Dodger in the original London and Broadway productions of Oliver! as well as a starring cameo role in a hallmark episode of The Brady Bunch television show and later reprised parody film; Love, American Style; and My Two Dads. Jones is considered one of the great teen idols.

On the morning of 29 February 2012, Jones went to tend his fourteen horses at a farm in Indiantown, Florida. After riding one of his favourite horses around the track, he complained of chest pains and difficulty breathing and was rushed to Martin Memorial South Hospital in Stuart, Florida, where he was pronounced dead of a severe heart attack resulting from arteriosclerosis.

On Wednesday, 7 March 2012, a private funeral service was held at Holy Cross Catholic parish in Indiantown, Florida. The three surviving Monkees did not attend in order to avoid drawing attention from the grieving family. Instead, the group attended memorial services in New York City as well as organising their own private memorial in Los Angeles along with Jones's family and close friends. Additionally, a public memorial service was held on 10 March 2012 in Beavertown, Pennsylvania, near a church Jones had purchased for future renovation.

On Monday 12 March, a private memorial service was held in Openshaw, Manchester at Lees Street Congregational Church where Jones performed as a child in church plays. Jones' wife and daughters travelled to England to join his relatives based there for the service, and placed his ashes on his parents' graves for a time.