GERRY Ryan's funeral will not be held until the end of this week with sources indicating a post-mortem is unlikely to take place before Tuesday.

Thousands of people are expected at the service for the late 2FM DJ following his untimely death on Friday, although details have yet to be announced.

Within hours of his body being discovered at his Leeson Street apartment in Dublin, tributes were flowing in from the world of entertainment and politics, and a retrospective on the popular RTé celebrity was quickly arranged for the Late Late Show.

A cause of death will not be confirmed until the post-mortem examination takes place although there are already strong indications he died of a heart attack.

His body was discovered by partner Melanie Verwoerd, who had become concerned when efforts to contact the presenter on Friday afternoon proved unsuccessful.

Ryan's ex-wife Morah Ryan said yesterday that she and her children were utterly devastated by the loss but said their grief had been eased slightly by the support of the public.

"Myself and the children (Lottie, Rex, Bonnie, Elliott and Babette) are totally devastated by the sudden loss of Gerard.

"Despite the fact that all our hearts are broken, our pain is somewhat eased by the overwhelming number of messages of support and condolences that we have received.

"Thank you for respecting our family's privacy and we know that you will continue to do so in the coming days."