A FUNERAL service is being held this Thursday following the death of a popular Catholic priest.

A service for Father Tony Battle will be held at St Mary's in Newcastle, the cathedral where he served much of his ministry.

Fr Battle, who for the last three years served as parish priest at St Patrick's in Langley Moor, died on Monday at the age of 62 in the Marie Curie Centre, Elswick, Newcastle, after a short illness.

The Rt Rev Kevin Dunn, Bishop of Hexham and Newcastle, led tributes to the priest, who made headlines in 1990 when he led protests against the introduction of the poll tax.

Bishop Dunn said: "He was a good man and a good priest who will be sadly missed by many people in the diocese. He stood up for what he believed in."

Fr Battle was born in Washington and attended St Joseph's Primary School in his home town and St Cuthbert's Grammar School in Newcastle, before winning a scholarship to study at King's College, London.

After training in Rome, he was ordained into the priesthood in October 1969 and became an assistant priest at St Mary's Cathedral in Newcastle. In 1979, he was appointed to the position of chaplain at Newcastle University, where he served the spiritual needs of students for eight years.

Fr Battle was parish priest at Holy Rosary Church in the Teams area of Gateshead, when he was fined by magistrates in Blaydon for refusing to pay the tax, which he said his Christian faith obliged him to oppose.

He went on to be parish priest of the Holy Family Church in the Grindon area of Sunderland before moving to St Patrick's in 2001.

His body was returned to St Mary's - the cathedral where he gave ten years of service - on Wednesday for a service prepared by Fr Battle before his death.

His funeral service was taking place at the cathedral this Thursday at 12.05pm, followed by cremation.