Hello, good morning and welcome: Royals and celebrities turn out in force at Westminster Abbey to celebrate life of Sir David Frost

 

• 2,000 mourners were expected to gather at Westminster Abbey for Sir David's thanksgiving service today
• His widow Carina and Prince Charles set to lay wreath on the broadcaster's memorial stone near Poets' Corner
• Leading figures from the world of broadcasting, politics and showbusiness attended to pay their respects
• The legendary interviewer and satirist died in August at the age of 74

By Hugo Gye
  Dozens of the most celebrated figures of the past few decades gathered at Westminster Abbey today to pay tribute to the life and work of Sir David Frost.
The Prince of Wales and Duchess of Cornwall led the mourners at the star-studded memorial service, which was also attended by entertainers, broadcasters and sportsmen.
Sir David, known for his pioneering satire and incisive interviews, died in August aged 74.

Family: Sir David Frost's widow Carina with her sons Wilfred, Miles and George outside Westminster Abbey

 

Couple: The Prince of Wales and the Duchess of Cornwall were leading the mourners at the memorial

Arrival: The Royal couple were last to arrive at the service, which started at noon today

Mourners: Royal in-law Pippa Middleton arrived at the ceremony with sailor Ben Fogle

Smiles: Miss Middleton with Mr Fogle, his wife Marina and another friend as they arrived for the ceremony

Royals: Sophie, Countess of Wessex, left, was also at the service, as were Princess Beatrice and her mother the Duchess of York, right

He was famous as a genial and welcoming host - and the esteem in which he was held was shown by the crowd of 2,000 people who were expected to attend his memorial.
Fellow journalists such as Andrew Marr, Martin Bell, Andrew Neil, Terry Wogan and Melvyn Bragg were pictured arriving at the Abbey this morning.
The world of showbusiness was represented by comedian Ronnie Corbett, Little Britain star David Walliams, actress Joanna Lumley and quiz show host Anne Robinson.
From politics, Sir John Major, Cherie Blair, Alastair Campbell, Ann Widdecombe and former Speaker Betty Boothroyd were all in attendance.

Memorial: This stone has been laid near Poets' Corner in memory of the beloved broadcaster

Comfort: Prince Charles talks to Sir David's widow and family at the door to the Abbey

 

Respects: Sir John Major and Andrew Marr - walking with a cane after his stroke last year - arriving at the ceremony

Tributes: Actress Joanna Lumley on her way into the Westminster Abbey memorial service

Glamour: Esther Rantzen, left, and Sienna Miller, right, dressed up for Sir David's memorial service

Order of service: The booklet handed out to mourners featured a photograph of Sir David dressed in his habitual black tie

Passion: Sir David was also pictured as a younger man on the order of service booklet

And Sir David's status as a high society figure was shown by the presence of socialites such as Jemima Khan, Pippa Middleton and Tara Palmer-Tomkinson.
Prince Charles joined Sir David's widow, Lady Carina Fitzalan-Howard, in laying flowers on a memorial stone near Poets' Corner.
Among the great and the good who spoke to honour him were the BBC's director-general Lord Hall and Sir Michael Parkinson, who delivered readings.
The Very Rev Dr John Hall, Dean of Westminster said Sir David was 'amongst our greatest communicators'.
He said: 'Surely it was the warmth of his humanity, his interest in people, and what made them tick, that made his "Hello, good evening and welcome" welcome in the world's living rooms.'

Comics: Sir David's contribution to the world of comedy was represented by the presence of figures such as Ronnie Corbett, left, and David Walliams, right with his wife Lara Stone

Friends: Lord and Lady Archer posing for a photograph outside Sir David's service

Broadcasting: Sir David, one of the greatest interviewers of his time, was honoured by colleagues like Eamonn Holmes, left, and Sir Terry Wogan, right with wife Helen

Ministers: Iain Duncan Smith, left with celebrity agent Jonathan Shalit, and Kenneth Clarke, right, were guests at the service

Two of Sir David's sons were delivering poems during the service and hymns included He Who Would Valiant Be and Jerusalem.
Ronnie Corbett, who worked with Sir David in the 1960s satire boom that launched both their careers, was among those reading prayers during the service.
The service reflected the thread of humour and satire which ran through his career with a comic tribute from Lumley called A Sonnet Of Sorts For A Star, which she co-wrote with musician Sir Richard Stilgoe.
It began: 'Shall I compare thee to Sir Robin Day? Thou wert more lovely and more temperate. Earth has not anything to show more fair, Hello, good evening, welcome, Frosty's there.'

Memory: Magician Uri Geller, left, and BBC executive Alan Yentob, right, also paid their respects

The humorous tribute included the lines: 'No more TV-am, no Al Jazeera - We end not a career, but end an era; For now he's gone, ascended into orbit, And I look up to him.'
It concluded with the line: 'When Frost has gone, can spring be far behind?'
The service included a montage of highlights from Frost's broadcasting career.
Former BBC director-general Greg Dyke gave the address and, as well as paying tribute to Sir David's talents and how he made 'television history', joked about his 'shortcomings'.
Sir David never mastered technology, even 'old technology', he said, recalling how when they walked past a cash machine, 'I said, "Hang on a minute, I need to get some money," he looked at me in awe. He'd never used a cash machine in his whole life'.
Despite changing the face of television, Sir David also used to get his sons to help him tune in the TV to the football match he wanted to watch, he said.
Mr Dyke drew laughter when he said that when Carina, before she became his wife, was asked after she first met Sir David whether he was a religious man, she replied: 'Oh yes, he's very religious. He thinks he's God.'
He added: 'He was a self-confessed workaholic but also he was David the friend, David the father and David, Carina's husband.'

Sisters-in-law: Jemima Khan, left, was at the ceremony as was her brother Ben's ex-wife Kate Rothschild, right

Guests: Lulu, left, attended the ceremony with a male companion; Terry Waitre, right, known for his time as a hostage in Lebanon, was a friend of Sir David

He joked that the service, which ended with bells ringing, looked 'remarkably like one of David's summer parties but without the alcohol'.
Paying tribute to his talents, he said that the late broadcaster was 'unique' adding: 'There will never be another David Frost, dominating the television industry in the way he did.'
But he said that despite changing not just television but 'Britain forever', Sir David wanted to be remembered as a 'family man...father...and caring, funny and generous friend'.
Mr Dyke joked that while Sir David did not touch alcohol for the first 18 years of his life, he 'made up for it after that'.
He said that when broadcasters initially failed to recognise his talents it was the 'television equivalent of Decca turning down the Beatles'.
Early on in the service, guests watched a montage of Sir David's broadcasting career, including his famous Nixon interviews and Tony Blair's surprised reaction when he asked him if he and George Bush pray together.
Known for his interviews - above all with disgraced U.S. President Richard Nixon - Sir David spent more than 50 years as a television star.

His award-winning interview style was considered non-aggressive, affable and effusive - but he had a talent for extracting intriguing information and revealing reactions from his subjects.

Relatives: Anne Robinson, left, attended the service with her daughter Emma, while Simon Le Bon, right, was accompanied by his wife Yasmin

 

New Labour: Alastair Campbell and his wife Fiona Millar, left; Cherie Blair with her son Euan, right

During his series of five interviews with Nixon in 1977, the slippery former president known as 'Tricky Dicky' dramatically admitted that he had 'let down the country'.
The encounter later formed the basis of the play Frost/Nixon which was made into a hit film, with Michael Sheen playing Sir David.
Sir David's big break came during the 1960s satire boom when he co-created and hosted That Was The Week That Was.
Another of his early programmes, The Frost Report, effectively launched John Cleese, Ronnie Barker and Ronnie Corbett on their subsequent glittering careers
In more recent times, he hosted Breakfast With Frost on Sunday mornings and panel game show Through The Keyhole and worked for Al Jazeera.

CHAMPAGNE-LOVING SON OF METHODIST MINISTER WHO SPARKED SATIRE BOOM AND BROUGHT NIXON TO HIS KNEES

Legendary: Frost with Richard Nixon during their interviews in 1977

Sir David Frost (1939-2013) was one of the most recognisable faces on British television for several decades thanks to his role as a satirist and interviewer.
He was born into a very middle-class family in Kent, the son of a Methodist minister, but later became a lover of the high life whose abilities as a host were famous throughout the fashionable world.
After attending Cambridge, where he edited two student publications and acted in the Footlights, and soon after graduation was chosen to host That Was the Week That Was.
The BBC satire was considered daring and cutting-edge, and launched Frost's career as a presenter and interviewer.
His fame soon spread to the U.S., where he presented three interview shows a week, but it was not until 1977 that he cemented his status as one of the world's leading broadcasters.
That year, he recorded a series of interviews with former President Richard Nixon in which he persuaded the disgraced politician to admit that he 'let the American people down'.
The encounters were adapted into a play and later a film called Frost/Nixon, starring Michael Sheen as Frost and Frank Langella as Nixon.
As well as appearing on TV, Frost was involved in a number of ventures behind the scene, including the launch of London Weekend Television in the 1960s and TV-am in the 1980s.
He interviewed all eight Prime Ministers from Harold Wilson to David Cameron, and seven Presidents between Nixon and George W. Bush.
Frost, who was knighted in 1993, was also known for hosting society parties attended by the great and the good.
He died of a heart attack in August last year while on board the Queen Elizabeth cruise ship, and is survived by his wife Carina and their three sons.

High-profile: TV presenter Carol Vorderman, left; actress Jane Asher, right, with her husband Gerald Scarfe, an illustrator

World of Westminster: Former Speaker of the House of Commons Betty Boothroyd, left, and ex-MP Ann Widdecombe, right

 

Presenters: Melvyn Bragg, left, and Martin Bell, right, paid their respects to one of the greatest practitioners of their trade