A host of British Tv stars turned out to say their goodbyes to late actor Bill Tarmey at his funeral in Manchester, England on Tuesday (27Nov12).

The veteran Coronation Street star passed away earlier this month (Nov12) at the age of 71, and dozens of his former co-stars were present at the service held at Albion United Reformed Church.

Wheelchair-bound Liz Dawn, who played Tarmey's onscreen wife for 30 years, looked visibly strained as she attended the memorial alongside William Roache, Sue Nicholls, Julie Goodyear and Michael Le Vell.

More than 700 mourners, including fans, crew members and beneficiaries of the star's charity work, listened as actress Samia Ghadie gave a moving eulogy, likening Tarmey to "a surrogate dad".

Tarmey's onscreen son Nigel Pivaro also paid tribute to the Tv favourite, telling the congregation, "Bill's huge generosity of spirit, his warmth, his wit, his patience, his wisdom - we will keep those qualities in our hearts. They will stay with us forever. That will be his lasting legacy."

The service was relayed via loudspeakers to the hundreds of guests outside the packed church, and a video montage of family photos was shown as Tarmey's rendition of The Wind Beneath My Wings was played.