Taylor Jenkins, five, and Lewis Jenkins, seven, loved the water and their favourite bedtime film was Jaws, the crowded service of family and friends heard. The brothers' coffins were painted with sealife, Taylor's with his favourite shark, the hammerhead, and Lewis's with a great white shark.

At the funeral, which the Gazette was invited to by the family, a eulogy was read by Father Bill Haymaker on behalf of the boys' grandmother, Donna Brown, in which she described how the boys loved to dress up, answering the door to her as Batman, Spiderman and even Darth Vader.

They adored swimming, trampolining and playing games on their Xbox game console.

"They will never be forgotten," she said, "They are always in our hearts. This is not goobye though, we will meet again. We love you lots, Lewis and Taylor. I will always look out for the brightest stars and know that you are there."

The boys' mother, Denise Goldsmith, placed a teddy bear on the coffins before being comforted by family members, including the children's aunty, Emma, who read a poem for them at the service.

Words written by their father, Stewart Jenkins, were read aloud by Fr Haymaker. He was unable to attend the service as he is currently on remand in prison.

He wrote, "I can remember the first time in my life when I really discovered the true meaning of love. Taylor was asleep in his cot and I could hear he had awakened and was stirring.

"I stood by his cot just watching him and he turned and looked at me and smiled the biggest smile. I sat on the end of the bed with him and began to cry.

"I said to Denise I had never known love like this before and I just couldn't understand how any man could walk away from their children like my dad did to me. I made a promise to Taylor and Lewis I would never leave them."

He ended the eulogy by saying, "I may have lost my boys but there is one thing I know, my love for my babies is not lost, nor will it ever die."

Lewis and Taylor, both pupils at Shinewater Primary School, died at their home in Milfoil Drive on October 4. The fire is being investigated by East Sussex Fire and Rescue Service and Sussex Police, who are not treating it as arson.

A memorial service was held for them at Shinewater Community Centre on October 12, where community members left prayers and messages on paper angels to be added to a remembrance book. Bouquets and tributes still line the outside of their Langney home and more than 3,000 tributes have been left on an internet memorial page.

At the funeral, the poem Death Is Nothing At All was read aloud by Fr Haymaker and two songs were played. The first, With You by American R&B singer Chris Brown, was special to the family as Lewis and Taylor knew the words and often sang them together.

As the mourners left the chapel, The Lion Sleeps Tonight was played because, as the order sheet said, the lyrics mean, "'The greatest lions are asleep and we await their awakening. In our Christian faith we all await that great day when we will awaken to a new morning where there is no sunset and no dawn."

Speaking to the packed chapel, with many people stood at the back, unable to fit into the pews, Fr Haymaker said the boys had adored each other and been full of life and energy.

They had loved the water, whether swimming, wearing their snorkels and masks in the bath or visiting the Sea Life Centre in Hastings, and loved sharks.

He said, "Each of you holds sweet gentle memories of these adorable children. And it is those very memories that will embrace you in years to come, as the pulsating flames of sorrow and pain that clinch you now move to become the warm embers of memory that will embrace your hearts."

Donations in Lewis and Taylor's memory can be made to Great Ormond Street Children's Hospital, care of Hailsham Funeral Service, 11 Station Road, Hailsham, BN27 2BE.