Friends and colleagues of Ballykissangel star Tony Doyle have paid him tributes at a cremation service in Dublin.

The service at Dublin's Glasnevin Cemetery follows a packed funeral service on Thursday night, when actors including Jimmy Nesbitt and Niall Tobin joined Doyle's family and friends at Terenure College Chapel.

Known to millions of viewers as entrepreneur Brian Quigley in the hit BBC drama, Tony Doyle died in St Thomas's Hospital in London on Friday.

His sudden death came just a fortnight before he was due to start filming a new detective series, McCready and Daughter, with former EastEnders' star Patsy Palmer.

Fellow Ballykissangel star Niall Toibin - who plays Father MacAnally, the parish priest - paid tribute to his friend's "warmth" and acting ability, telling mourners: "His very name on the cast list was an assurance of quality and very often perfection. He was a gifted actor."

'Unexpected'

Doyle is survived by his wife Sally, and six children, three of whom are from a previous marriage.

Christopher Doyle spoke of his shock at his father's sudden death.

He asked: "How can we comprehend the death of someone so special and important to us when he was taken so unexpectedly?"

He also praised Doyle's commitment and love for his six children, saying:

"There is a saying that any man can be a father, but it takes someone special to be a dad. He was a dad to us."

'Uplifting impact'

Father Dan Breen, parish priest of Avoca, County Wicklow, where Ballykissangel is filmed, said Doyle had an uplifting impact on everybody who knew him.

"He helped us all get on with our lives by what he said. He knew how to relish what other human beings and the earth itself give us as gifts," he said.

Robert Cooper from BBC Northern Ireland said that it was a bitter blow that he should have died just as he was at the peak of his career.

"In his last few years, Tony had grown from being a very fine actor into being a great actor.

"Tony had a particular ability to unzip the soul of a character and lay it bare in front of an audience."

Doyle, who was in his 50s, was one of Ireland's most prolific and successful actors.

His career spanned more than 40 years and included roles in Between the Lines, Band of Gold, Rumpole and Taggart.

After the service, family and friends of the star hugged and embraced on the steps of the church before his coffin was driven away to Glasnevin cemetery to applause from other mourners.