Hundreds of people gathered at St Peter’s Cathedral in Adelaide on Monday to farewell Bannon, who died a week ago from cancer aged 72.

Pallbearers, including step-son Dylan Lewis and former Premier Mike Rann carry the coffin of John Bannon at St Peter’€™s Cathedral. AAP Image/Brenton Edwards

His daughter Victoria delivered a touching eulogy, saying she would remember her father as a loving man who supported her career as an aid worker unconditionally.

“For all his love of tradition, he rejected the prejudices of his age,” she said.

“My dad, the feminist, turned out to be one of the staunchest supporters in my life.”

An often formal presence in public, Victoria said her father cut a different figure at home, teaching her how to belch the alphabet and climbing onto the roof in his singlet and thongs to clear the gutters during storms.

“For all his characteristic statesmanlike manner, at home he could be something more akin to the class clown,” she said.

He would be especially missed at Christmas, where he loved to recite the poems of Robert Burns and perform Gilbert and Sullivan tunes, she said.

Angela Bannon says farewell to her husband. Photo: AAP/Brenton Edwards

Brother-in-law Chris Gent told the service that the man who revered Shakespeare was also notorious for tearing up the bumper car track at the Royal Adelaide Show.

“There was something for everyone in ‘JB’, no matter who you were or where you came from,” he said.

“He was a good friend, a wise mentor and a thoroughly decent man.”

Former prime minister Bob Hawke said Bannon would be remembered with affection and respect by many Australians.

“He was a man of total decency, enormous capacity and very self-effacing,” Hawke said as he arrived at the service.

The former premier had accepted responsibility “beyond the bounds of necessity” for the State Bank collapse when he chose to resign despite being cleared of any personal wrongdoing, Hawke said.

Federal Opposition Leader Bill Shorten described Bannon as a great Australian, saluting his resilience in the face of adversity.

“He had very tough times and he rebuilt himself and carried on, so I think there’s a lot of lessons in John Bannon’s career for a lot of Australians,” Shorten told reporters.

Premier Jay Weatherill said Bannon was a great man who lived his life with total integrity.

Bannon served as SA premier and treasurer from 1982 to 1992, winning three elections for the ALP.

During his time in office Adelaide won the first submarine construction contract, won the right to stage the Formula One grand prix and established the Olympic Dam copper and uranium mine.

Others who attended his funeral included former prime minister Julia Gillard, federal Labor frontbenchers Anthony Albanese, Penny Wong and Kate Ellis, state Opposition leader Steven Marshall and federal Education Minister Simon Birmingham.

– AAP