THE family of a former pub landlord who liked to gamble asked mourners to place bets in his memory instead of buying flowers.

And, on the day of Harry Plumbley's funeral, many of the mourners won as Time To Regret romped home in the 2.30 at Wolverhampton.

The winnings will now be donated to charity in memory of Harry, 52, of Westmorland Close, Darwen, who was taken ill at Christmas with a chest complaint and died in hospital from bronchial pneumonia.

Son Ross and daughter Amber made the unusual request in the family announcements section of the Lancashire Telegraph.

Instead of the more usual arrangements for flowers and donations to charity they wrote: "Family flowers only please or, if desired, place a bet on the 2.30pm race in memory of Harry".

And that's just what his family, friends and regulars at his local, the Greenfield off Cranberry Lane, did for Harry, a sandblaster and former landlord of the Punch Bowl.

Most money went on favourite Time To Regret, which raced clear to win at 11-8 to boost the charity collecting box on the end of the bar.

Ross said: "I haven't a clue about horses but, before we went to the service at Blackburn crematorium, I stuck a tenner on Time To Regret for him.

"Dad didn't have many regrets and I reckoned that was the one he'd fancy.

"Everyone else seemed to have followed the tip.

"Dad was never one for the formalities. He liked a bet and he liked a laugh.

"So we stuck a form guide and a racing paper in his coffin and waited for a bit of divine inspiration from him."

Just as the funeral service was getting under way, the nine runners in the 2.30 were lining up for the one-mile Pontins.com handicap.

Ross said: "The race was on the telly but Dad was probably the only one watching it.

"I just knew his horse would win.

"We had a good wake at the Greenfield and made a few quid for charity. Everyone was talking about the race."