Billy Connolly's memories of Chic Murray's funeral, when smoke from the crematorium "swirled" among the congregation, are revealed in his new documentary on death.

The actor and comedian's memories of his own father's death are also part of the second programme of his television series, Billy Connolly's Big Send Off.

In the show, in which Connolly looks at attitudes, belief systems, rituals and customs relating to death and dying, said the funeral of Scottish comedian Chic Murray, who died in 1985, was one of the best he has attended.

"We went outside the crematorium in the car park, tables with champagne and glasses were all ready for us," he says.

"We all dived over to get a glass and Chic's friend said, 'Don't drink, just hold your glass, hold your glass.'

"And everyone's like, 'What are you talking about holding your glass?' and he kept looking to the door of the crematorium and eventually a wee man in overalls appears at the door and mutters and Chic's friend went, 'Right, just a second' and looked up and smoke came out the chimney and he went, 'To Chic Murray.' And we went, 'Chic.' And believe it or not the smoke came out and came down and swirled amongst us. It was the most moving thing."

Connolly, who was recently diagnosed with prostate cancer and Parkinson's Disease, also says he is not afraid of dying and was at the bedside of his father, William, when he died.

He adds: "Even in the case of my father, they took him off the life-support machine and the whites of his eyes were kind of yellow with the morphine the doctors had given him and he was breathing in that chesty, congested way from the pneumonia and then his breathing suddenly changed to a very calm, quiet breathing.

"And he looked at my sister and he looked at me and the whites of his eyes were white again and he just slid away. It seemed a very comfortable thing."

In the programme, Connolly recalls meeting Keith Moon, the late drummer of The Who, at an ice cream parlour in London.

Soon afterwards Moon died of a drug overdose at the age of 32.

He says: "I was absolutely broken-hearted. I only knew him for a couple of hours but I was devastated because I was really looking forward to having him as a friend.

Billy Connolly's Big Send Off: ITV tomorrow at 9pm.