Winner's 'perfect' funeral

The funeral has taken place of film director Michael Winner, who died on Monday after a long battle with liver disease.

Sir Michael Parkinson and former Rolling Stone Bill Wyman were among the mourners who paid their final respects in north London.

A statement, issued by Michael Winner's office said if he had been alive to film it, he would have said: "Perfect, darling, perfect. A cold wind whipped a flurry of snowflakes across the cemetery - a film directors' dream."

Among the mourners were many of Michael's friends including Sir David Frost, Terry O'Neill, Don Black, Chris Rea and Henry Wyndham, chairman of Sotheby's.

Journalist and broadcaster Andrew Neil has paid tribute to Michael Winner, saying that he "didn't suffer fools gladly", but also didn't take himself too seriously.

Sunday Times restaurant critic AA Gill has paid tribute to his colleague Michael Winner, saying he was "immensely generous."

Gill said: "He had immensely loyal friends, and was very good in company.

"He was a natural as a restaurant critic, not because he knew a lot about food, but he did know about the business of hospitality, sitting around a table, telling stories.

"He was very good at what he did."

Andrew Lloyd Webber, who was among the close friends invited to Michael Winner's wedding, has paid tribute to him on Twitter.

TV mogul Simon Cowell has paid tribute to Michael Winner, saying that "laughter was never far away" when Winner was around.

He said:

• Michael Winner began directing at the age of 25
• Winner gained a reputation for violent films - frequently working with Charles Bronson
• Michael Winner's most famous film was Death Wish which was released in 1974
• He often edited his own films under a different name - 'Arnold Crust'

Michael Robert Winner was born on October 30 1935, the only child of a couple of Russian emigre stock. His father was a millionaire property developer and his mother, as colourful a character as himself, was an inveterate gambler who lost millions in the casinos in Cannes.

At the age of 13, the young Winner was already showing an entrepreneurial streak. He started to write a showbusiness column called Michael Winner's Show Talk, syndicated to 35 local papers.

He attended St Christopher's School, Letchworth, and was asked to leave because he was paying another boy to clean his room. He avoided National Service by pretending to be gay.