Lynda Bellingham dies: Actress's funeral to be held in Somerset

The actress and presenter lost her battle with cancer this weekend

Lynda Bellingham has postponed a theatre tour after her cancer diagnosis (PA)

Lynda Bellingham outlined her funeral plans in her autobiography, There’s Something I’ve Been Dying to Tell You.

The actress and presenter died in her husband’s arms yesterday after losing her battle with colon cancer. She had planned to end her chemotherapy in November so that she could have one final Christmas with her family.

She wanted to be buried in Somerset, but also to have a “knees-up” in London.

“I say: ‘I wouldn’t expect everyone to have to come all the way down here to pay their respects. I want a tribute, or something that is nice and handy and anyone who fancies coming in and saying goodbye can do so easily, not have to get on a train for three hours,’” she writes.

“We have reached a compromise, I think, and there will be a service in Somerset and a knees-up in London. So if you are passing, do drop in for a quick boogie.”

Numerous high-profile names have paid tribute to Bellingham, who was given an OBE for her charitable efforts earlier this year, including Ed Miliband, who tweeted that he was “very sad” to hear the news.

Simon Pegg described Bellingham as his “first TV mother figure and and a treasured friend”.

Radio 2 presenter Chris Evans called her “an absolute mensch of the highest order”, while Good Morning Britain presenter Ben Shephard said she was “just wonderful to be around”.

Her fellow Loose Women panelists Lisa Maxwell, Denise Welch and Linda Robson also paid their respects on Twitter.