Friends and family of TV newsreader Carol Barnes have attended a memorial service for her daughter who died in a skydiving tragedy.

Clare Barnes, 24, plunged to her death in Australia last month, moments after kissing her boyfriend in mid-air as they celebrated her 200th parachute jump.

Ms Barnes, who lives at Brighton Marina and Clare's father, Europe minister Denis MacShane, flew to Australia for her funeral.

However, her colleagues at ITN and friends and family were unable to attend and a memorial service to celebrate her life was held at The Grand hotel, Brighton, for them to pay their respects yesterday.

Among the congregation were Jon Snow, fellow newsreader Nicholas Owen and Mark Webster, ITN's former Northern Ireland and Moscow correspondent.

Clare's brother James, who runs a record shop in North Laine, Brighton, and Hove-based actor Chris Ellison also paid tribute to Clare at the service.

Ms Barnes arrived at the hotel to be greeted by Mr MacShane and Mr Owen before walking up the steps to the foyer where a montage of photos celebrating Clare's life was on display.

Mr Snow, who read a lesson during the service, said as he went into the hotel: "I had known Clare since she was a girl and have known Carol and Dennis for almost 30 years.

"I was very shocked to hear of Clare's death and, as a parent, I can only imagine how hard it has been for Carol and Dennis to come to terms with."

During the service, led by Unitarian Church minister Jane Barton, friends were invited to give their own tribute before the congregation watched a video of Clare skydiving.

After the service, Ms Barnes and Mr MacShane said: "It was a wonderful memorial to a beautiful, gutsy girl who died doing what she loved best.

"She left her family and friends far too early but her memory will never die."

Clare's boyfriend, Chris McDoughall, spoke of the moments before her death.

He said she was "happy beyond belief". The pair shared a mid-air kiss seconds before her parachute failed to open, sending her plummeting 14,000ft. Her emergency parachute became tangled and her main chute became wrapped around her body.

Mr McDoughall said after the service: "There was a glint in her eye, she was happy beyond belief, she was exhilarated.

"She was fighting all the way down and she did everything right.

"Everything was going right for Clare. We had bought a house together and she was becoming a really good skydiver and was just about to get Australian residency."

Clare, a former Brighton College student, was a dedicated competition skydiver and was taking part in a nine-way formation jump when she died.

Her 26-year-old boyfriend was filming the jump over Barwen Heads, near Melbourne.

An initial investigation by the Australia Skydiving Association indicated that the canopy failed to open because it had not been packed properly, probably by Clare herself.