Where we live, and the culture that shapes our lives, form our dying too. In Scotland, says Dominic Maguire, funerals are still very public events where a crowd of 600, even 1,000, is not uncommon. "Like in Ireland, there is much stronger feeling of community there than there is in the south, and a funeral renews that bond. It's a moment for people to come together."Leverton's is one of the few independent funeral directors left in London. It's the company which dealt with Ian Dury's funeral, and the arrangements for that of Diana, Princess of Wales. In the chapel of rest in its Golders Green branch, a simple gold cross stands on a small altar beside the coffin of an elderly man.

Had he been a Roman Catholic, a crucifix with a nailed Christ would have been on display. If his faith had been Jewish, there would have been a floral display; a Hindu, and a symbol of one of the religion's gods would have been in position.Jason Worsnip, who manages the Golders Green firm, having moved from Lancashire to London, has noticed that funerals in the south are far more individual in style "Here we deal with a much more mixed population The Catholics want big funerals, with evening receptions The Nigerians like the casket open. The Chinese spend up to £10,000."When Mr Worsnip was 13, his mother died, and his father insisted that he was too young to see her body But the boy was determined, and won the battle It was, he says, the best thing he could have done. It didn't frighten him, and he was able to say his goodbyes and discover his vocation in life.Unlike Mr Worsnip, most Britons shy away from any thought of death. The dying have been shunted into hospitals, geriatric homes and hospices, and we can spend a lifetime without ever seeing a corpse.

"It's common for our clients to be scared of seeing a dead body, even if it's their mother or their husband," says Mr Worsnip. "They ask if we'll stay with them in the chapel."The Natural Death Centre is the organisation which promotes DIY funerals and environmentally friendly disposal of bodies, such as in woodland burials. Next Sunday it is organising the eighth National Day of the Dead. It believes that society is suffering because we ignore death."The main point, as with the Mexican Day of the Dead, is to remember friends and family who have died," says Nicholas Albery, the centre director.