The funeral service of a Napoleonic-era re-eneactor nicknamed Chewie started with the theme to Doctor Who and ended with Bohemian Rhapsody.

Brian Keeling was a well-known character around Medway for his work leading the 50th Reenactment Group, which he formed with friends at Fort Amherst in 1989.

Known as the “colonel”, he stored gunpowder, canons, bullets and tents at the house he shared with his sister Carole Bryant and her husband in Corporation Road, Gillingham.

The 57-year-old died in his sleep of heart failure on May 29 and his funeral was held last week.

Mrs Bryant said: “He was due to go to the doctors and was supposed to fast for 12 hours, but he couldn’t go without a cup of tea, so he didn’t go. But that was his way, he had to have his tea.

“He would have PG Tips in his big mug with milk and two sugars.”

She added: “He would clean the guns out the back, they always smelt like rotten eggs.

“The whole wall of his bedroom was filled with soldiers and history books.

“When he went into something, he went into it in a big, big way.”

He did the tunnel tours at Fort Amherst and led his troops into ‘battle’ at events in Portugal and in Spain.

His greatest claim to fame was when he performed in the ITV series Sharpe behind his idol Sean Bean. This came after he was scouted at Fort Amherst in October 1995.

His striking beard earned him the nickname Chewie, short for Chewbacca of Star Wars fame.

For more than a decade, with other group members - Andy Morrison, Steve Bateman, Keri Tolhurst and Alison Staff - he performed at events across Kent. Mr Keeling also turned his hand to model soldier painting, looking after fish and watching Doctor Who. He had more than 200 models and 12 fish tanks.

Mrs Bryant said: “I’ve got to find people to come out and assess all the models, as friends said he had the biggest model army in the world.”

At the funeral held at Medway Crematorium, wearing uniform Ms Tolhurst and Ms Staff travelled from Bath and displayed the 50th Reenactment Group flag.

The hand-stitched standard almost didn’t make it, as it was stolen the day after Mr Keeling died. But with help from police and fellow re-enactor Mr Bateman, it was later returned.

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