The body of an Oldham cyclist killed in a road collision has been lying in the mortuary for three months amid fears that his family cannot afford a funeral.

Charles Birmingham was fatally injured in a crash involving a skip wagon on Shaw Road on April 8. His friend and landlady Linzi Millward says she believes Charles’ family are unable to afford a funeral and has launched a Just Giving page in a bid to raise £4,000.

“It’s just so sad to think he’s not been buried yet,” she said of a man known locally as ‘the Music Man’ thanks to his habit of playing Seventies and Eighties music from speakers mounted on his bike. “He didn’t have any savings. He had his stereo CD player and that was it,” she added.

Birmingham had two brothers, three sisters and a son. His nephew, Jason, told the Manchester Evening News that while there had been some misunderstanding about whether the police investigation was still ongoing, the family was grateful for financial assistance.

“There has been some miscommunication within the family. We thought that the police investigation was still going on and we hadn’t realised we were allowed to have his body. We appreciate all the support and myself and other relatives will be chipping in so we can now hold the funeral.”