Dozens of strangers gather in Radcliffe for funeral of veteran who died with no family

• A video report from ITV journalist Paul Crone

Dozens of strangers have turned out for the funeral of a 92-year-old veteran who died with no surviving family.

Members of the public and veteran community were invited to attend a service to remember Derek Thompson who died following a two-year battle with cancer in August.

Derek's coffin was escorted by a Remembrance flag-bearing motorcycle to Radcliffe crematorium where dozens of decorated veterans gathered to pay their final respects.

Owen Dykes of The Crown Veterans Breakfast Club which Derek used to attend, said although he had no blood relatives, he still has his veteran family.

"It's only fitting that we send one of our own - one of our brothers - off with a good farewell", he said.

"He was a gentleman. He used to come into the breakfast club and his smile and character used to light up the room. He was an unbelievable person to speak to."

Although not much is known of his military history, Derek was a member of the Borough Of Bury Veterans Association and often spoke of carrying out his national service.

After discovering he had no family, the veterans' charity and The Crown Veterans Breakfast Club put out a plea for military personnel, past and present, and civilians to attend his funeral.

Owen, who is also a member of both organisations, said the response to the plea for people to attend Derek's funeral has been "overwhelming."

"We've had people contact us about Derek, we've had a florist in Heywood who offered to do the flowers, and we've had a bugler come forward.

"The power of social media has been overwhelming - more than 1,000 comments and 2,000 likes. I had to turn off my phone."

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