THE town's official jester led a funeral procession as the father of Bournemouth juggling was laid to rest.

Barney Bay and six jugglers walked in front of Paul Dibben's hearse as it arrived at the crematorium.

Mr Dibben, who died of cancer aged 56, was the founder of Bournemouth Juggling Club.

He literally stood out at their events thanks to his penchant for wearing stilts.

The service reflected his outlook on life - the opening song was Bob Marley's One Love, and the last song was Monty Python's Always Look On The Bright Side of Life.

Mr Dibben, from Jewell Road in Townsend, only started juggling in 1997 to entertain his baby son.

"It's all to do with fun - making people happy," he told the Echo in 2003.

At the family's request the watching crowd of mourners were nearly as colourful as the procession of jugglers There were not many black ties, but lots of sandals, Hawaiian shirts and biker jackets. A former member of Queens Park Infant School said: "He used to juggle at our fetes and he never charged for it."

One mourner noted the blazing sunshine and said: "Well, he made the sun shine for us."

Widow Sue and children Lorna and PJ wrote in his death notice: "He was a true friend to many. Life will never be the same without your smiling face and your loving soul."