PUB regulars have helped to raise money to allow the daughter of a musician and poet who died last week to attend his funeral.

Customers at the Man and Scythe pub, on Churchgate, Bolton, held their own ceremony to commemorate the life of John Gilroy, known as John Jellyhead.

John, aged 46, died in hospital after an illness.

He was a well-known character on the town's acoustic scene, and was best known to regulars at the Man and Scythe where he started and hosted poetry sessions.

His daughter Sarah, now in her early 20s, lives in America, but she has been unable to raise the airfare to attend her father's funeral, which will take place next month in his native Brixton, London.

John was a keen environmentalist and is set to be buried in a wicker coffin.

Drinkers at the pub held a commemorative collection to raise more than £320 to help pay for Sarah's £700 plane ticket.

A further £150 was raised in a collection among staff at the benefits office, and £88 was raised in the Dog and Partridge pub, on Manor Street, Bolton, where John was also known to customers.

John was one of the most recognisable performers in the town, and often busked in the passageway between Newport Street and Howell Croft.