Cilla Black's body flown back to UK

Cilla Black's body has been flown back to Britain, her publicist confirmed.

The singing and TV star died of a stroke after falling and hitting her head at her Spanish villa last weekend.

She was sunbathing at her villa on the Costa del Sol, when she lost her balance, fell, and hit her head which knocked her unconscious.

A post-mortem examination revealed that she subsequently died of a stroke, a statement from her publicist said earlier this week. She would not have suffered, it added.

No funeral details have yet been released.

Born Priscilla Maria Veronica White in Liverpool, she became one of the nation's favourite entertainers after transforming herself from a successful singer in the 1960s to the front woman on shows such as Blind Date and Surprise! Surprise!

She scored two number ones in 1964 - Anyone Who Had A Heart and You're My World - as well as enjoying many other hits, before going on to concentrate on TV.

She went on to host more than 500 editions of her programmes and was the first woman to have her own prime-time chat show on BBC1.

In a joint statement earlier this week, her three sons Robert, Ben and Jack said: ''We are devastated by the sad loss of our mother, but have been deeply touched by all the kind messages of support from her friends, fans, the public and media.

''We would like to thank everyone, especially the people of Liverpool. The tributes and condolences have really helped us through these difficult times.

"The Spanish authorities have now told us we are able to bring mum home, which we hope to do as quickly as possible.

''We would also like to thank all those involved for their assistance with this matter. We respectfully request for our continued privacy to grieve.''

Tributes have poured in for the 72-year-old star, led by close friends like Sir Cliff Richard, Sir Paul McCartney and Christopher Biggins.