Austin Mitchell: Funeral of former Grimsby MP held in Bradford

Austin Mitchell served as the Labour MP for Grimsby for 38 years

The funeral of former Labour MP Austin Mitchell has taken place in West Yorkshire.

Mr Mitchell worked as a television journalist before being elected to the Great Grimsby constituency in 1977. He held the seat until 2015.

He died at the age of 86 in Leeds General Infirmary on 18 August.

Speaking before the service at Saltaire United Reformed Church in Bradford, Revd Canon Michael Hunter said Mr Mitchell had left a "great legacy".

His funeral took place at Saltaire United Reformed Church

He said: "[His legacy was] community is what matters, people matter, far more than parties.

"He loved people. And he loved the people of Grimsby especially."

Melanie Onn, who replaced him as Great Grimsby MP, said: "He was loved and renowned across the town and it was an impossible task really to fill Austin's shoes.

"He'll be missed enormously, the service today had an outpouring of love and a real touch of his humour as well - that's how I and people across Grimsby will choose to remember him."

Mr Mitchell had represented Grimsby from 1977 to 2015 before stepping down

Mr Mitchell was born in Bradford in 1934 and moved to New Zealand in the late 1950s to lecture at the University of Otago.

After returning to the UK in the late 1960s, he joined Yorkshire Television's nightly Calendar news programme in 1969.

He remained with the programme, apart from a brief spell at the BBC in 1972, until 1977.

During his time at Calendar he conducted an interview with Brian Clough and Don Revie - on the night Clough was fired as Leeds United manager after just seven weeks.

The 1975 interview has achieved legendary status in British football.

The service was held in the same church where he was baptised in 1934

In 2013, he underwent heart surgery and stood down as an MP ahead of the 2015 General Election.

As MP for Great Grimsby he was a prominent and colourful figure in the North East Lincolnshire port.

• More from Yorkshire

In a bid to help promote the fishing industry he even briefly changed his name by deed poll to Austin Haddock in 2002.

A memorial service for the former MP is due to take place in Grimsby at a later date

After his death was announced the Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer said he had served voters "with remarkable commitment for 38 years".

A memorial service for Mr Mitchell is due to take place in Grimsby at a later date.