A bar manager from Brighton has been found dead in her Spanish hotel room.

Bianca Heard's body was found on her bed by her boss and friend Mark Whiting - with whom she had been on a break in Barcelona - on Sunday morning.

The cause of her death remained a mystery last night although the Spanish authorities had carried out a post mortem examination and were due to announce their findings today.

Miss Heard, 29, who worked at Brighton Rocks, Brighton, for two years, had planned to spend Saturday night in the Catalan capital before making her way with Mr Whiting to Palma where he is planning to start a new life.

He last saw her alive when they parted company at 3am after visiting several bars.

He told The Argus: "She was my best friend. We went out and the last time I saw her she was happy and smiling.

"I went into her bedroom in the morning and she was dead on her bed."

Mr Whiting, who is selling his popular bar in Rock Place, Kemp Town, spent the rest of Sunday helping the police with their investigations, re-tracing his movements with two plain-clothed policemen and relying on his French to answer questions.

He said: "I'm just trying to help the police and make sure they sort it out."

Miss Heard grew up in Brisbane but left her native Australia for Brighton four years ago, joining Brighton Rocks two years later.

The bar closed after news of her death came to light and floral tributes and an Australian flag were left outside the premises yesterday.

One of the tributes read: "We only knew you for a short while but you lit our hearts with your beauty and amazing personality.

"You will be sadly missed. To the brightest star in the sky, Bianca."

Neil Parker, 34, head chef at Brighton Rocks, said: "She was just fantastic.

"She had so much charisma. She was courageous and caring.

"She wasn't just our manager, she was our friend and that counts for a lot in catering and bar work. She was a real cool cookie.

"Everyone's just blown away by this. She's going to be missed so much."

Miss Heard was well-known for her work in the community and regularly raised money for charities including Pride in Brighton and Hove.

She ran monthly art shows at Brighton Rocks and only last Monday launched a major exhibition in conjunction with painter Jeremy Sanders to raise awareness and funds for Pride and Amnesty International.

Mr Sanders, 36, said: "She was full of life - friendly and so warm. She was so many miles away from her original home and in a very short space of time she had met a lot of people and touched a lot of people's lives.

"She was only a baby and she grew up as a person and was very passionate about everything and put a lot of work into what she did."

"She created a really good mixed community at Brighton Rocks and that's reflected in the response.

"It's really tragic."

Staff at the British Consulate in Barcelona were offering support to Miss Heard's family.

A Foreign Office spokeswoman said: "A post-mortem needs to be carried out and we don't know any more at this stage.

"We are just waiting for the Spanish authorities to go through their procedures."

Brighton Rocks is expected to be closed for a few days but people can leave their messages of condolence outside.

Carley Morrow and Tina Hart, who worked with Miss Heard at the bar, contacted The Argus by email to pay tribute to their friend.

They said: "We both loved you dearly. You supported us in every way.

"We will never forget the fun times we had together in work and play.

"You were an amazing person and we just wish we could have spent even one more day together.

"We had so much more to share."