WINCHESTER bade farewell to a former Dean of the cathedral on Friday (December14).

A funeral for the Very Rev Michael Till took place at the cathedral and mourners turned out in their hundreds.

Those gathered at the service were welcomed by the current Dean, James Atwell, before prayers were led by the Very Rev John Drury, former dean of Christ Church, Oxford, who said of Mr Till: “He was an abundantly kind and true soul.”

Mr Till was then remembered in an address by long-time friend and colleague Rev Julian Barker.

Mr Barker said: “Spending time with him invariably involved laughing. He was both witty and profound.

“Imagination and creativity were two of his most notable qualities.”

Mr Till was Dean of Winchester Cathedral from 1996 to 2005, having previously served as Archdeacon of Canterbury, and in his earlier years as a chaplain of King's College, Cambridge.

Winchester dignitaries including Mayor of Winchester, Frank Pearson, and the Lord-lieutenant of Hampshire, Dame Mary Fagan, were in attendance.

After the service around a hundred mourners braved heavy rain to observe Mr Till’s burial within the grounds of the cathedral.

Born in 1935, Mr Trill, who died on December 4 in Petworth, leaves a wife and two children.