The funeral service was taking place today of Sunny Rogers, the lifelong stage partner of funnyman Frankie Howerd.

The veteran variety artist, 92, died just before Christmas at a nursing home in Lancing.

Her friend Alwyn Miller said: "She was a showbiz lady all her life."

Sunny, who lived in Brighton, had been suffering from Alzheimer's disease in the last years of her life.

Ms Miller, a friend for more than 40 years, said Sunny had been ill for a number of years.

Sunny, who was born Jessie Rogerson in 1913, was famous for putting up with Howerd's on-stage put-downs for most of her career.

She told The Argus in 2001: "I never minded what Frank said to me on stage because people roared with laughter."

He would tease her and famously insulted her by labelling her the deaf pianist. He would say: "Poor old soul. She's past it, you know. That is if she ever had it. She's deaf - aren't you dear? Deaf, I said deaf."

But she was respected among her peers for her comic timing. Stage star Roy Hudd said: "Far from being a poor old soul she was very glamorous and knew exactly what she was doing on stage. She could feed a line or throw a glance at him that would bring the house down."

Sunny, who got her nickname because of her smile, made her first stage appearance dancing at the Trocadero Grillroom in London and at 14 became a Tiller girl.

She became a choreographer and later joined a rope-spinning Western act, Buck and Chick, which toured Europe and Egypt.

She became friendly with Howerd in 1946 after appearing in a variety review with him and Max Bygraves.

She began acting in sketches with him and by 1960 started accompanying him on the piano in his act.

They toured this country and abroad, including South Africa. She later described how she adored being his "poor old soul".

And despite the fact the gay comic never allowed her to share in his television fame and left her nothing in his will, she would never say a bad word against him.

She last appeared on stage with Howerd, who died in 1992, in his acclaimed one man show at the Garrick Theatre in London in 1990. Sunny, who never married, was a keen supporter of showbusiness charities.

The funeral was today at Woodvale Crematorium, Brighton, at 12.15pm.