HUNDREDS of people packed a small Kidderminster church to pay their final respects to famous hairdresser Umberto Giannini.

Dozens more stood outside St Ambrose RC church in Birmingham Road in the biting wind for more than an hour, mourning the loss of a man who was described as "good, generous and kind".

The 33-year-old, whose clients included Madonna, Gwyneth Paltrow and Ulrika Jonsson, died of a rare skin virus which affects only one person in 200,000.

The condition is muscle wasting and Mr Giannini had scaled down his work in the past year as his health gradually deteriorated.

Yesterday, floral tributes lined the pavement outside the church as mourners, including Led Zeppelin lead singer Robert Plant, arrived to pay their last respects to Mr Giannini.

During the hour-long mass, the congregation sang the hymns O Lord My God, The Lord is my Shepherd and Abide with Me, and his friend Kevin France paid tribute to Mr Giannini's life.

Addressing the congregation, parish priest Father Douglas Lamb said that while many tributes had been paid, the best memory of Mr Giannini would be that he went about doing good.

"People loved him for his goodness, his gentleness and the kindness of his nature," he said.

"In eternity, Umberto's reward will not be for his business acumen, his worldly success - not for what he did but for who he was and what he contributed to the lives of others."

As the mass ended, Mr Giannini's coffin was carried out of the church to the sound of Lenny Kravitz's Heaven Help followed by his grieving partner, Claire, and his family. His father was supported by a family member.

Police had closed the A456 Coventry Street one-way eastbound between the ringway and Birmingham Road to allow the funeral procession to make its way to a private burial at Park Lane cemetery.

Mr Giannini, who was a pupil at Hagley RC High School, learnt his trade in London and then spent some time in America before returning to Kidderminster to open his first salon.

Celebrities

He went on to open branches in Worcester, Bromsgrove, Stourbridge, Tettenhall, Hagley and a salon in Knightsbridge, London, which attracted clients such as Yasmin Le Bon, Tamara Beckwith and Helen Mirren.

He also launched his own products and went on to become the youngest winner of the Hairdresser of the Year Award in 1999.

Dozens of celebrities are expected to honour Mr Giannini at a memorial service in London next week.

He also leaves two sons, aged three and one.