Peter Mayle, author of A Year In Provence, planned 'lavish lunch' in place of a funeral

For Peter Mayle, one of the great joys of life in the South of France was the long lunch, preferably accompanied by several bottles of wine.

The best-selling author of A Year In Provence died on Thursday, aged 78, and had made plans for the most fitting of send-offs.

In one of his last interviews, Mayles was asked about dying. “I loathe funerals, and would prefer not to have one.Instead, I’d like to put aside enough in my will for a lavish lunch for a few friends,” he said.

“I’ve often thought the best time to die would be after a long lunch - just before the bill arrives.”

Mayle died following a short illness at a hospital near his home in the village of Vaugines.

The bon vivant once remarked: "I write to be able to go to restaurants. My books are pretexts to eat well. The rest is nothing but literature, n'est-ce pas?"

Mayle moved to France in the 1980s after a career in advertising, and chronicled the experience in A Year In Provence. From an initial print run of 3,000, it went on to sell six million copies.

His descriptions of the food, the wine, the gorgeous stone farmhouse and the lavender-scented countryside - not to mention the charming Provencal locals - inspired thousands of Britons to up sticks.

The book was turned into a television series starring John Thaw, in a performance which Mayles found to be a little too grumpy. Mayles also collaborated with Sir Ridley Scott, a neighbour, on the Russell Crowe film A Good Year, about a banker who inherits a French vineyard.

Paying tribute yesterday, Sir Ridley said: “I think Peter picked up on the humour in the relationship between the British and the French. There was always that humorous, competitive spirit that Peter captured brilliantly.”

Mayle was awarded the Legion d’Honneur in 2002, and took French citizenship shortly before the EU referendum. He considered Brexit to be a “disaster”, saying in 2016: “I am sad for the future of my English friends.”

He had no plans to return to Britain as he got older. “Why be vaguely happy in England when you can be very happy in Provence?” he asked.

At the height of his fame, Mayle bought a second home in Long Island, New York, in order to avoid the hordes of tourists who descended upon his farmhouse in Menerbes. He once found some Italians in his swimming pool.

Later, he moved to an 18th century farmhouse in the village of Lourmarin, selling it in 2011 for six million euros and moving to Vaugines with his wife, Jennie.

Joel Raymond, mayor of Lourmarin, who has been in office for the past six months, said: "I only met him a few times, including once during European elections when he voted.

"From what I can gather, in Menerbes his writing caused rather a stir. The description of the house and his relationship with locals thrust the village into the limelight but wasn't warmly received by everyone and put some people's noses out of joint, I was told. But here, he remained very discreet," he told the Telegraph.

Chef Elisabeth Bourgeois, who runs Le Mas Tourteron near Gordes, said Mayle was a regular customer and “charming gentleman”.

She denied he had annoyed anyone in the region. "He did a huge amount for the region. His books were very mild, with a wry take on locals but nothing mean. He brought a huge amount of Americans and Britons to the area.”