His usual table at his favourite pub, laid for lunch in tribute to Freddie Forsyth

Freddie Forsyth was hailed by the actor Robert Powell as a unique man who enriched the lives of those around him as friends and family paid tribute at the funeral of the best-selling writer, journalist and Daily Express columnist. More than 100 mourners gathered at Chilterns Crematorium in Amersham, Buckinghamshire, on Wednesday before repairing to Freddie's favourite pub, The Jolly Cricketers, in nearby Seer Green where The Day of the Jackal author spent many happy hours ensconced with the newspapers in his "crossword corner".

There Freddie's paper and lunch - with his customary glass of red wine - were movingly laid out at his usual table.

The author of more than 25 books, also including The Odessa File and The Dogs of War, Forsyth died at home in Buckinghamshire aged 86 on June 9 after a short illness. His life was every bit as thrilling as the novels that sold 70 million copies and delighted readers around the world. But Powell, 81, who shared a 35-year friendship with Forsyth - whom he described in a moving eulogy as one of his "closest friends" - admitted the modest superstar rarely talked about it himself.

"I didn't know who he was until I read his memoir, The Outsider," he said. "I had no idea about this man who I had spent hours and hours talking to and laughing with because he never had that kind of ego. He would talk about everything under the sun but not himself. I learned about one of my best friends from reading his book."

Powell recalled a trip to Madeira where they spent four days marlin fishing for a newspaper article without so much as a bite. "We didn't catch anything - but we spent our evenings talking and drinking wine!"

Forsyth's younger son Shane told mourners his father taught them to hunt and shoot but was a terrible cook. "You could trust him with your wife, your money or your life - but not with a piece of toast!"

Shane added: "He was a righteous man guided by a steadfast moral compass." He would "always do the right thing no matter how hard or dangerous that may have been. He will always be my hero." Forsyth's older son, Stuart, told the congregation their father had been a "master of words" but also a "man who couldn't find his socks".

He added: "Where others were chasing press releases, he sought the truth... He was sharp as a knife, blunt as a spoon, a man who travelled the world but kept his heart close to those he loved."

A bugler played The Last Post to mark Forsyth's service to his country, both in the RAF,where he won his pilot's wings aged just 18, and later as an MI6 agent in Eastern Europe during the Cold War.

The most iconic of Forsyth's books was The Day of the Jackal which he wrote over 35 days on his second-hand typewriter. Published in 1971, it won him the Edgar Allan Poe Award for best novel. The story was turned into a hit film starring Edward Fox as the assassin hired to kill French president Charles de Gaulle. It was remade last year as a TV series starring Eddie Redmayne.

Forsyth was credited by many people with inventing the modern thriller. Before retiring on his 85th birthday in August 2023, Freddie wrote a must-read weekly column for the Daily Express for nearly two decades. A sequel to the 1974 classic The Odessa File, on which Forsyth worked with thriller writer Tony Kent, will be published later this year.