The party's over: city bids farewell to Wilson

Manchester never knew how much it would miss Tony Wilson. Yesterday, beneath a grey northern sky, the city's sense of loss for the man who had been the life and soul of its party for so many years was clear.

Family and friends of the man known as "Mr Manchester" attended a private funeral ceremony at St Mary's Roman Catholic Church, known as the Hidden Gem, in the city centre.

Fans gathered outside the church to pay their final respects to the founder of Factory Records and the Haçienda nightclub.

A roll call of famous Mancunians turned out to remember Wilson, a champion of the city, who died earlier this month, aged 57, after a prolonged battle with kidney cancer. They included the Happy Mondays frontman Shaun Ryder and New Order and Joy Division bassist Peter Hook, whose bands were key to the Factory Records success story.

Peter Saville, who co-founded the iconic record label with Wilson, gave a reading during the mass. So too did Richard Madeley, who worked alongside Wilson at Granada Television, and arrived at the service with his wife Judy Finnigan.

After the service, which included the hymns "Hail Queen of Heaven" and "To Be A Pilgrim", six pallbearers, including Wilson's son, carried the coffin out of the church to the sound of the Happy Monday's track "Bob's Your Uncle". Wilson was buried in Manchester's Southern Cemetery. Other musicians in the congregation included Andy Rourke of The Smiths and Clint Boon of the Inspiral Carpets.

The television and radio presenter Terry Christian and the former Liverpool City Council deputy leader Derek Hatton were also present to wish farewell to the Salford-born music mogul, who doubled up as a reporter and presenter on the news programme Granada Reports and fronted So It Goes, the first UK music programme to show punk bands. The Manchester United manager Sir Alex Ferguson was among those who sent floral tributes.

Steve Coogan, who played Wilson in Michael Winterbottom's film 24 Hour Party People, could not attend, but sent a message of tribute: "Tony was a true civic champion, who found excitement and creativity on his own doorstep."