Family and friends pay their respects to Metric Martyr

Led by his wife Leigh, family and friends filled St Benet's RC Church, close to Sunderland's Stadium of Light, to pay their respects to the father-of-three who died last week from a heart attack.

Mr Thoburn's coffin was transported by horse-drawn hearse, with floral tributes proclaiming Dad, Boss, Daddy and Brother.

Mr Thoburn, 39, became internationally renowned after Sunderland City Council prosecuted him for selling bananas by the pound on his fruit and vegetables stall.

He was given a six-month conditional discharge in 2001 for breaching the Weights and Measures Act.

The authorities also seized his Imperial scales, but the trader insisted he was merely doing what his customers wanted.

His legal battle thrust him on to the international stage as he and four other traders launched a legal challenge through the courts.

Their battle finally ended earlier this year when the European Court of Human Rights decided their appeal was inadmissible.

Paying tribute to Mr Thoburn at the church yesterday, Father Charles Corrigan repeated Mr Thoburn's famous quote about the birth of his son Jay in March 2002, who he announced weighed 3,796 grams (8lb 3.5oz).

At the time Mr Thoburn said: "No-one I spoke to had a clue if he was the size of a baby elephant or a small tomato.''

The priest said: "He loved his work and was genuinely interested in his customers and this guided the way he led his life."

He said Mr Thoburn had prepared baskets of fruit for the congregation of St Benet's at Christmas.

Fr Corrigan said: "His wife and family were the most precious and important people in his life. He gave them the love he had received from his dad.

"Leigh shared so much with him and has been left devastated by his death."

Two horses pulled Mr Thoburn's coffin from the church past his market stall in Southwick so that customers could pay their respects.

He leaves wife Leigh, 30, Rhys, 13, Georgia, seven, and two-year-old Jay.