The last of the Bee Gees lays Robin Gibb to rest

BEE Gee Barry Gibb paid an emotional tribute to his brother Robin’s “magnificent mind and beautiful heart” at his funeral – saying he had finally been reunited with his twin Maurice, who died nine years ago.

The 62-year-old singer died from kidney failure last month after fighting cancer and pneumonia and suffering from a serious bowel condition.

Barry, the sole surviving member of the Bee Gees trio, told the congregation at St Mary’s Church in Thame, Oxfordshire, yesterday: “Life is too short. In Robin’s case, absolutely too short.

“We should have had 20 years, 30 years of his magnificent mind and his beautiful heart.”

Referring to the late Maurice, he added: “They were both beautiful. And now they’re together. They’re actually together.”

The Bee Gees sold more than 220 million records including 60 hit singles, five of which went platinum. They first had success in the 1960s and then later in the mid-1970s disco era after they recorded Night Fever for the film Saturday Night Fever starring John Travolta.

Mourners wept as Robin’s ornate white coffin entered the church to the sound of the Bee Gees’ hit How Deep Is Your Love.

Hundreds of fans lined the streets as Gibb’s horse-drawn glass carriage decorated with red roses made its way through the singer’s home town, from his nearby estate, to the church.

The cortege was followed by his two Irish wolfhounds, Ollie and Missy, together with friends and family. In keeping with his long musical career, the horses wore decorative black cloths emblazoned with a gold treble clef and were trailing a piper.

According to his family, Gibb has wanted to “say a final goodbye to fans and his town of Thame”.

Family mourners including Robin’s widow, Dwina, and his mother were joined by celebrity friends including Sir Tim Rice, Leslie Phillips, Uri Gellar, DJ Mike Read and Peter Andre.

Barry told the congregation of his brother’s sense of humour. He said their favourite television programme was The Goon Show, and added: “There was no funnier man than Spike Milligan – apart from Robin. And his sharp, intuitive wit will live with us forever.”

He hinted at recent tensions between himself and Robin, saying: “We were laughing all the way. Sometimes crying. God knows how much we argued. Even right up to the end we found conflict with each other, which now means nothing. It just means nothing. If there’s conflict in your lives – get rid of it.”

Robin’s young daughter Snow, whose mother is a former housekeeper of his, did not attend the service – but was mentioned by Barry at the end of his eulogy as “little Snow” in a list of close family members.

Earlier in the week, former prime minister Tony Blair, who had been a friend of Gibb. paid tribute to the star saying: “Robin was not only an exceptional and extraordinary musician and songwriter, he was a highly intelligent, interested and committed human being.

“He was a great friend with a wonderful open and fertile mind and a student of history and politics.”