Duchess of York bids fond farewell to old pal Sir Dai Llewellyn

January 21, 2009Jan 21, 2009, 11:00 PM GMT

There were tears, but there was also laughter in fond remembrance at the funeral of Sir Dai Llewellyn - something which would no doubt have pleased Sarah, Duchess of York's close pal. At this week's service, the flame haired royal appeared to be sharing happy memories about the pal she described as "larger than life" as she joined mourners in Suffolk.

The Welsh bon vivant, who passed away on January 13 aged 62 after a battle with bone cancer, knew Sarah from her single days on the social scene in London and in Verbier, the Swiss ski resort in which her then-boyfriend Paddy McNally owned the most popular chalet.

Among the 100 other mourners at St Mary's Church in Coddenham was Sir Dai's former wife Vanessa and brother Roddy, a former flame of the late Princess Margaret, who inherits the baronetcy. All looked on as a hunstman sounded Gone Away - the signal to the field that the hounds are in full cry - as his coffin was borne away.

Some of the happy times she shared with the Welsh socialite were clearly in her thoughts as the flame-haired royal joined guests at Sir Dai's Suffolk funeral

Other members of the congregation included younger brother Roddy Llewellyn and his wife Tatiana. After strained relations in the past, the two siblings had become closer in the months leading up to Sir Dai's death

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