A memorial service for Sir David Amess has taken place at St Mary's Church, Prittlewell, Essex
Hundreds of people lined the streets of Southend to pay their respects as the hearse containing his casket passed by
A funeral mass for the late MP for Southend West will take place at the Roman Catholic Westminster Cathedral in London on Tuesday
Sir David, 69, was stabbed to death at a constituency surgery in Leigh-on-Sea, Essex on 15 October
Mike Liggins
BBC Look East
Draped in the Union flag, the casket carrying Sir David Amess has been taken in to St Mary's Church.
Sir David Amess's coffin arrives at church
Steve Scruton
BBC Essex
With a police escort, the hearse carrying Sir David Amess has arrived at St Mary's Church ahead of the memorial service.
The hearse has arrived outside St Mary's
Mike Liggins
BBC Look East
Tony and Beryl Evans are in Prittlewell to watch the memorial service
Among those who have come out to pay their respects are Tony and Beryl Evans.
"He was a very good MP," said Mrs Evans. "He was a very good local person who always helped everyone.
"If you went to an event he would always pop at the front and give a nice, cheerful, positive speech.
"But it is a very sad day. We were very shocked about the whole thing."
Ian Wyatt
BBC Essex
Susan and Peter Croud, who live in Hockley, say they felt compelled to come to Prittlewell to pay their respects.
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Mrs Cole said Southend being awarded city status - something Sir David had long campaigned for - was "the biggest accolade".
"They must all have thought so much of him," she said.
Andrew Sinclair
BBC Look East political correspondent
This is the current scene outside St Mary's Church in Prittlewell as those invited to attend the memorial service gather to enter the church.
There are about 450 invited guests attending the service plus about 50 singers who are part of the three choirs involved.
Laurence Cawley
BBC News
The former Conservative MP Ann Widdecombe is a long-standing friend of the Amess family.
She will be speaking on the family's behalf during the service.
The former Conservative MP Ann Widdecombe will be speaking on the family's behalf during the service
Dame Ann told how their friendship was forged early on in her parliamentary career.
She told how Sir David "absolutely loved it" when she took part in Strictly Come Dancing after retiring from politics.
"David thought it was hilarious," she said.
Stuart Woodward
BBC Essex
Here are the mourners entering the church for the memorial service for Sir David.
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Those half-muffled bells are currently ringing at St Mary's Church, Prittlewell, ahead of the memorial service getting under way at 13:00 GMT.
Sir David Amess funeral: Church bells ring out in tribute
Steve Scruton
BBC Essex
After the service, Sir David Amess's casket will be taken out the east door of the church to be placed on a horse-drawn hearse.
The hearse will be pulled by four black Fresian horses.
It will then be taken around various locations in Southend where people can pay their respects.
Andrew Sinclair
BBC Look East political correspondent
Mourners arriving at St Mary's Church in Prittlewell
Mourners have started to arrive at St Mary's Church for the memorial service to Sir David Amess.
It is understood about 450 people have been invited to the service.
Ian Wyatt
BBC Essex
The bells are due to start ringing out at St Mary's Church at about 12:20 and will toll until four minutes before the service.
The bells will be as "half-muffled" as a mark of respect.
Laurence Cawley
BBC News
Image source, PA MediaSir David's family have asked in lieu of flowers that people consider making a gift to the organisations he supported
Sir David’s family has requested that in lieu of flowers or other tributes, donations are made to the charities he supported.
These include Dogs Trust, The Music Man Project, Prost8, Endometriosis UK, and the Dame Vera Lynn Memorial Statue.
The Reverend Paul Mackay told how Sir David would joke about his church one day becoming a cathedral
One of the priests leading the memorial service to Sir David Amess has told how the MP sometimes "joked" that St Mary's Church in Prittlewell would become a cathedral when Southend became a city.
The Reverend Paul Mackay who, with Monsignor Kevin William Hale, will lead the service at St Mary's from 13:00 GMT, said: "At the heart of this is a family that is grieving the loss of a husband and a father.
"That makes it something more tangible in that sense.
"So many people knew Sir David and he would come here for a church service on occasion," he said. "He always used to smile and joke that this would be the cathedral of Southend when he was talking about it becoming a city."
Laurence Cawley
BBC News
There's a painted portrait of Sir David Amess that now hangs on the wall of Southend West Conservative Association's office.
Sir David never got to see the portrait, which arrived the day he died
The work was painted by a constituent who planned to take it to Sir David during the constituency surgery on the day of his death.
But before they could hand it over, Sir David had been fatally wounded.
Andrew Sinclair
BBC Look East political correspondent
Mark Francois, Conservative MP for Rayleigh and Wickford, this morning described Sir David as: “A selfless and dedicated public servant and the archetypal example of how to be a good MP.“
Image source, UK ParliamentThe MP for Rayleigh and Wickford Mark Francois will be reading a eulogy at the service
Speaking to the BBC as he arrived at St Mary's Church, where the service will take place, Mr Francois said: “David was genuinely loved by his constituents and we anticipate a fair number to turn up today to pay their respects.
“The public response to his death has been overwhelming.
"Lady Julia and the children will have been overwhelmed by the sheer volume of sympathy and empathy they‘ve received from all over the UK.
“They have been deluged with letters and cards from members of the public to former prime ministers.“
Simon Dedman
BBC Essex political reporter
Sir David Amess spent two decades lobbying for Southend to become a city.
Within days of his death his lifelong ambition was realised when the Queen agreed the rare honour could be granted, making Southend the 52nd city in England.
Prime Minister Boris Johnson said the process towards city status was "unstoppable"
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But when will the town's transformation actually happen?
Prime Minister Boris Johnson told BBC Essex: "I can't tell you officially when it is going to be done. I think maybe the mills grind slowly on this kind of stuff, but it will happen.
"It is now an unstoppable process."
Stuart Woodward
BBC Essex
The memorial service for Sir David Amess will be held at St Mary's Church, Prittlewell.
The service will be for the family and invited guests only.
St Mary's Church, Prittlewell
The church tower at St Mary's was completed in about 1478
The usual congregation at St Mary's numbers about 130 members
Stuart Woodward
BBC Essex
While a little bit chilly, Southend sits beneath clear blue skies this morning as the town (soon to be a city) prepares to pay its respects to Sir David Amess.
The horse-drawn hearse will later make its way along Victoria Avenue in Southend
The flag continues to fly at half mast at St Mary's Church in Prittlewell
The memorial service at St Mary's Church in Prittlewell starts at 13:00 GMT
Stuart Woodward
BBC Essex
Former Conservative MP Ann Widdecombe has paid tribute to her long-time friend Sir David Amess.
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She told the BBC how, if you went for a meal with Sir David, the waiter would come over but not be able to take the order for "at least 10 minutes".
"David would want to know everything about him," she said. "Where he'd come from, where his family were, how he got into this, all the rest of it - he wanted to know everything.
"The waiter would stand there, hearing this quiz about his curriculum vitae, before David would actually say. 'we'll have prawns' or whatever it was."
Simon Dedman
BBC Essex political reporter
Sir Lindsay Hoyle's sentiments about Sir David Amess are echoed by Prime Minister Boris Johnson.
"He was a valiant campaigner for a long time for leaving the European Union, and he was ultimately successful in that, and he has the permanent memorial of having transformed Southend into a city," Mr Johnson said.
"His legacy really is that he will be a kind of exemplar of what a constituency MP can do."
Image source, ReutersPrime Minister Boris Johnson told BBC Essex how he was in the midst of a cabinet away day when he learned of Sir David's death
The prime minister told how several members of his cabinet broke down in tears when they learned of the death of Sir David, 69, was stabbed to death at a constituency surgery in Leigh-on-Sea, Essex, on 15 October.
Mr Johnson told BBC Essex how he was in the middle of a cabinet away day in Bristol when he learned of the Southend West MP's death.