LAST orders has taken on a whole new meaning at a Dorchester pub.

Drinkers are being asked to contemplate the manner of their passing when they order their next beer.

Regulars at the King's Arms in High East Street, Dorchester will be putting their glasses on beer mats carrying a questionnaire on their funeral plans.

The move is part of a campaign to get people talking about how they would like their funeral to look.

The mats have been produced by Co-operative Funeralcare which is aiming to take the fear out of funerals and counter what the company says is the disappointment felt by mourners about ceremonies that didn't live up to expectations.

With the message, 'It's your funeral - help others by talking about it' organisers hope the mats will prompt conversation among pub-goers about what makes a good final service.

They are hoping that punters will e-mail their favourite suggestions to the company, which is putting together a book of funeral ideas.

Co-operative Funeralcare regional manager John Woodford said: "Whether it's a Magpies' flower arrangement, black horses trotting past Hardy's Statue or Harley-Davidsons lining the high street, the book plans to feature a range of ideas and inspiration, both traditional and less conventional, on how to celebrate lives in an individual style."

Deputy manager of the King's Arms Kevin Allan says the beer mats are a sure-fire way to get people talking.

He said: "When you're sitting at a pub table you always read the beer mats and they do start up conversations. I'm sure people will talk about funerals, but I'm not sure how seriously they will take it. We were a bit worried about putting them out at first, but we thought we'd give them a go because they're quite funny."

He added: "We have had humorous mats from beer companies before but, I've never seen anything quite like this."

Canon Keith Hugo, rector of All Saints' Church, Weymouth, said he thought it was good for people to talk about how they wanted their funeral to look, but wasn't sure that beer mats were the right way to do it.

He said: "It is certainly always a great help when someone has been prepared to talk to their family about their funeral, so it is good that people are being given encouragement, but I'm not at all sure that producing beer mats about funerals is in good taste. As someone who does frequent pubs, I would prefer not to have a beer mat about funerals staring me in the face. I suspect that the same goes for most people who go into pubs, many of whom seem to be there to escape the facts of life, which in itself is a bit sad."