Joan Rivers funeral: Kelly Osbourne, Whoopi Goldberg, Sarah Jessica Parker and Howard Stern among mourners

The comedian's memorial service took place in Manhattan on Sunday

Joan Rivers funeral saw a host of celebrities turn up to pay respects to controversial comedian (Getty Images)

Kelly Osbourne, Sarah Jessica Parker, Whoopi Goldberg and Howard Stern were among the mourners to attend Joan Rivers’ funeral in New York today.

The controversial comedian died aged 81 on Thursday after suffering a cardiac and respiratory arrest during a routine procedure on her vocal chords.

Rivers detailed her wishes for a “huge showbiz affair with lights, camera, action” in 2012 book I Hate Everyone… Starting With Me, stating that she wanted “Meryl Streep crying in five different accents” and “a wind machine so that even in the casket my hair is blowing just like Beyoncé’s”.

Although Sunday’s memorial service was a more muted event, she certainly received a star-studded send-off, with other attendees including theatre legend Bernadette Peters, comedian Kathy Griffin, record producer Clive Davis, moguls Donald Trump and Steve Forbes and fashion designers Carolina Herrera and Michael Kors.

A host of TV stars also turned up for the funeral at Manhattan’s Temple Emanu-El, with Barbara Walters, Kathie Lee, Andy Cohen and Diane Sawyer all on the guest list.

Fans and media stood outside the synagogue to watch from across the street as barricades lined several blocks of Fifth Avenue.

Rivers’ publicist requested that in place of flowers, donations be made to God’s Love, We Deliver; Guide Dogs for the Blind or Our House.