A grieving son may have to wait six weeks to bury his father because of the crippling fuel crisis.

Andrew Claxton, of Cumnor Hill, has hit out at those responsible for fuel blockades, saying they are ignoring the real human impact of their actions.

His father, Edgar Claxton, MBE, died on August 31, at Green Gates Nursing Home, in Summertown, and was due to be buried at St Laurence Church, Shotteswell, near Banbury, tomorrow.

But the burial has had to be cancelled after more than half the mourners, who live across the country, said they could not make it because they have no fuel.

Emmy-award winning film-maker Nicholas, Edgar's youngest son, was due to attend the funeral, but is also stranded.

Now he has been forced to continue with a heavy filming schedule, keeping him out of the country for three weeks.

Andrew said: "Family and colleagues can't make it and there are problems with the flower delivery.

"Most of dad's friends are very elderly. Many are former rail workers in their 90s who are willing to travel great distances to attend, but not under such risky circumstances.

"We probably won't be able to bury dad until October. There's no way the effects of the crisis will end in two weeks, as the Prime Minister suggests.

"I just want to get the whole thing over with and move on. It's devastating and has made the grieving even harder to handle. Everyone has received the news with enormous disappointment. It's a miserable situation."

Edgar Claxton, who died at the age of 90, was awarded an MBE in 1969 for his work on the first British main line electric locomotive.

Andrew said his father would be sad to know his own funeral was delayed because of a public transport crisis.

He added: "There's a deep irony in this. My father spent his whole life persuading people to return to he railways.

"I think protesters have lost touch with the overall picture, which is that roads are congested and high fuel prices and tax is a mechanism to reduce that."